by Reece Butler
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Jessie leaned a shoulder against the wall, thumbs stuck in her pants, and watched Ace shaving. Life had been smooth since the wedding a few days ago.
She’d discovered Sin was a mixture of gentle and masterful. Sometimes he would spend endless minutes kissing her breasts, belly, and pussy. Other times he demanded she submit to him. A few times she ran, taunting him. Once he caught her, yanked down her pants, put her across his lap, and spanked her. Though she screamed, within minutes she was so wet when he entered her, he reached all the way in one thrust.
Henry was still a good friend, though she now knew he had a demanding side as controlling as the other two men. He respected her, brain, body, and soul. He once said she was far better company than any woman, and most men, he’d ever met. He enjoyed Beth and Amelia as well, since they were also strong, intelligent women. She felt relaxed with him, unless he got that gleam in his eye. She loved the way his nostrils flared and his cock jutted as he stalked her. He liked to take her from behind, angling his cock so her pussy purred.
She could usually predict how Henry and Sin would behave. Ace was different.
She took his ranch orders daily, making respectful suggestions when she thought they had value. It was gratifying when he said she was usually right. While they worked, he treated her as one of his best hands, which she was.
She stood up to him when they were lovers, however. She enjoyed wrestling with him, using her agility to make up for his strength. When they both fought hard to win, the loving was the best. Only he treated her that way, demanding she meet him toe to toe.
He met her eyes in the shaving mirror.
“Spit it out, Jessie. You want something, so ask.”
This was the hard part. She never liked asking favors. The fact he was her husband made it worse. Legally, he could demand anything from her and provide nothing. She hadn’t gone to Tanner’s Ford since that disastrous day when he humiliated her in front of the sheriff, and then Finan did worse at the hotel. But this wasn’t for her.
“I would like to go to town tomorrow. Could you rent a buggy for me?”
He flicked his eyes over her dusty pants and shirt. “Trouble not good enough?”
She dropped her head and stabbed at the dirt with the toe of her boot. Ace kept shaving, the quiet scrape of blade on whiskers like fingernails on a slate to her ears.
“Amelia told me that Doc says Molly and Sarah are ready to step outside Miss Lily’s, but they’re afraid. Since I saw them in that horrid place and won’t judge them for it, Doc said I should be the first to visit.”
Ace swished the soap from his blade and wiped it off. He splashed water on his face and used the flannel to dry. She waited patiently. She’d learned he was the type to think things through and then make a decision. Once the decision was made, he did not change it.
“I’d be pleased to escort you into town, Mrs. Langford,” he said. “Perhaps we could have dinner at the hotel and make an afternoon of it.” He winked. “Was it really that hard to ask me for something I’ve been wanting to do?”
She scrunched up her face to make a point of it and then smiled.
“I’ll be wearing the green dress I got married in, and I can’t ride Trouble in it.”
He tossed the flannel over his bare shoulder, set his feet wide, and looked down at her. He’d missed a spot of soap bubbles near his right ear.
“If you’re wearing that dress, then I’m definitely taking you to dinner.” He stepped close and circled her waist with his hands. “I’m going to show my beautiful, smart, dangerous wife off.”
“I’m not beautiful,” she muttered. “I saw lots of beautiful women in Virginia.”
He crooked an eyebrow. “Being a lovely woman does not take away from your other strengths.” He kissed her forehead. “All those women had was beauty. You’ve got strong arms to lasso a cow.” He dropped his hands to her bottom “And strong legs to hold my cock deep in you.”
He rubbed his groin against her belly. She could feel his hard length.
“Even better is your determination to face down your fears to help two women who had their innocence ripped away.”
She poked him in the chest. “I’m not afraid to go to town in a dress!”
He caught her finger, brought it to his lips, and nipped the tip.
“It’s not the going to town, Jessie. It’s the way people will stare at ‘that wild Elliott gal who had to marry that greenhorn, Langford.’”
She dropped her forehead onto his chest. Tears prickled her eyelashes. She’d never fit in, and going to Tanner’s Ford would prove that, even here, it was the same. He tilted up her chin.
“This greenhorn is proud to have his lady by his side.”
He pulled her close and kissed her. Every day, her feelings for him grew, and her enjoyment of his kisses deepened.
“Hey, there’s work to be done!”
Ace released her lips. Sin smacked her back cheek. She elbowed him in the gut.
“We need to hire a buggy first thing tomorrow,” said Ace, breathing hard. “Mrs. Langford will be visiting Miss Sinclair and Miss Unsworth to see if they are At Home.”
He said the words just like Aunt Jessamine used to. One wasn’t At Home unless one wished to meet the person stopping by. She thought the entire thing ridiculous. First was the expense of the ridiculous gowns designed only to impress other women. Then was wasting time going from house to house to drink weak tea and gossip with people one had seen the night before at another, equally boring, event.
“Of course they’ll be at home,” she said, changing the intent of his words. “They’ve not left Miss Lily’s since they escaped from BannackCity.”
Sin leered at her. “You going to wear that dress with the gap damn near down to your waist?”
“When Amelia fixed the ribbons on the matching corset,” she turned to Ace, “because someone was too impatient to undo them, she gave me a shawl to cover myself.”
“Can we watch you dress?” Sin’s expression raised her heat from simmering to eager. “There’s something about watching a woman put on clothes. The way she smoothes her stockings to her knees, how she slides her drawers over the curves of her ass—”
“She won’t be wearing drawers,” insisted Ace.
“I’ll need help to tie the corset,” she said.
“I’ll get the wagon,” said Sin, “but you don’t dress until I’m there.”
“That’s for tomorrow. There’s work to be done today,” ordered Ace.
* * * *
Ace held the buggy reins loosely as the horse trotted into Tanner’s Ford. For the first time, Mr. and Mrs. Kenrick Langford would appear in public. Jessie had tied the shawl over her head and around her shoulders as soon as she saw Miss Lily’s two-story Parlor in the distance. She didn’t have a bonnet, and married ladies covered their heads in public. Getting a matching bonnet was her excuse to encourage Molly and Sarah out of Miss Lily’s home.
Since Nora Dawes lived right next door, they wouldn’t have to go far. However, it wasn’t the distance that mattered, it was the doing.
“Sin said he told Rosa you’d be visiting when he came by this morning. She said they ladies will be dressed for a formal visit,” said Ace. He slowed the horses to a walk. They passed Miss Lily’s and Nora Dawes’ hat shop.
“Where are you going?”
“To the end of town and back.”
“Why?”
“I’m showing off my lovely wife on a beautiful September morning,” Ace replied. This was as close to riding down London’s Pall Mall as he was likely to experience again. If he’d been born first, he’d be the Earl of Denby. But he’d not have Jessie at his side. What he would have was debt up to his eyeballs, thanks to his father’s gambling. The heir followed in his father’s expensive footsteps.
Jessie sat beside him, tall and straight as they passed the few people on the boardwalk. He nodded his head at the old men outside the Mercantile. When he lifted
his hat at Mrs. Emslow, sweeping the steps of her boardinghouse, she peered suspiciously at him.
The Double Diamond had little to do with the banker, Hugh Jennett, but for some reason the man always showed his dislike. In this case, he turned his back and gave them the cut direct. If they were in a proper drawing room, he might call the man out for being so rude. Here in Tanner’s Ford, he had too much work to bother with pistols at dawn.
“From what I hear,” said Ace quietly, “that man deserves his wife.”
“Beth and Amelia call her ‘the bombazine beldame,’” replied Jessie. “It means a hag. Since she blames Molly and Sarah for what happened to them, I agree. If I wasn’t a lady I’d use a different word, however.”
Dieter Arnott, sweeping the boards in front of his butcher shop, lifted a hand from his broom to wave. The blacksmith, both hands full, nodded. Ace turned the buggy in a wide arc and headed back.
A boy rushed out from the large house under construction across from the hotel. Ace stopped the buggy, and the boy climbed halfway up. He grinned at Jessie but spoke to Ace.
“Howdy, Mr. Langford, I’m Billy O’Keefe. Mrs. McLeod says you’re Daniel’s new aunt and uncle. He’s my friend.”
Ace remembered Trace telling him Smythe hired the boy and his carpenter father. Billy was Daniel MacDougal’s friend, and they kept an eye on anything Smythe was up to.
“Pleased to meet you, Master O’Keefe,” said Ace. “May I present you to my wife, Jessie Elliott Langford?”
Jessie shot him a startled look when he didn’t call her ‘Mrs. Langford,’ then smiled at the boy. When she also shook his hand Billy smiled even wider. Ace reached in his pocket and took out a penny.
“Would you do me a favor and watch our wagon while we’re in town?” Billy nodded, and Ace tossed him the coin. “That’s a little something for your effort.”
After Billy saluted and got down, Ace brought the wagon to a stop in the space between Mrs. Dawes’ shop and the hotel. He tied off the horse and lifted Jessie down. They strolled along the boardwalk, pausing to look in the window of the hat shop. He guided Jessie down the path to Rosa’s kitchen door. When he knocked, Rosa drew back the bolt and opened the door. He removed his hat.
“Good morning, Miss Rosa. My wife wishes to enquire whether Miss Sinclair and Miss Unsworth are receiving visitors.”
Rosa rolled her eyes at his formal language. “Come on in, Jessie. I’m sure you could use a cup of tea after your drive.” She met Ace’s mild look with a no-nonsense one. “I will see you later. Doc’s at home and said he wouldn’t mind a visit from someone wearing pants.”
Ace hid his smile and bowed. As soon as the door shut in his face, Rosa shot the bolt home. He whistled as he retraced his steps. He crossed the street and knocked on Doc’s door.
“Thank God it’s you,” said Doc, gesturing for him to enter. “I love Rosa dearly, but there are too many females in that kitchen for my liking.”
* * * *
Two hours later, after discussing all manner of interesting, thoroughly masculine, subjects, Ace once more knocked on Rosa’s kitchen door. This time, he was invited in.
Molly, wearing a high-necked, long-sleeved white dress sprinkled with tiny pink roses, nodded shyly to him. She wore her blonde hair long, tied back with a pink ribbon like the young woman she was. Sarah had cut off all her hair. It was now shorter than Jessie’s, but without the curl. She wore a severe navy serge dress with a touch of white lace at her neck and cuffs. She met his eyes for a moment then looked away.
“Look, Ace,” said Jessie.
She held up a green hat a bit darker than her gown. He fought to keep his eyes on the hat and not on the bare tops of her breasts. He lost.
“Thank you,” he said, nodding at Molly and Sarah. “Now she won’t have to wear her shawl over her head while we eat dinner.”
“Thank you for the visit,” said Sarah. Her voice was low and melodious. “Perhaps you will allow your wife to visit another time.”
Ace chuckled. “Jessie doesn’t need my permission to visit you as long as she has an escort. I’m afraid our cabin isn’t much, but when Jessie’s home is built, I’m sure she would be pleased to welcome you anytime you wished.”
He thought of the large house by the river as Jessie’s. All he and his partners needed was a place to eat and sleep in. But her family insisted a big home was necessary as the Double Diamond was so close to town. The Double Diamond would put up any family caught too far from their ranch in inclement weather, or if it got too late. Beth suggested the location was a good place to board children once there was a school in Tanner’s Ford. Henry surprised him by immediately agreeing. After complaining for years about being the youngest of nine, he said he missed all the noise and confusion. He noted that Jessie looked uncomfortable at the idea of children.
“We’ll have lots of space,” continued Ace. “Including a separate guest room on the ground floor.”
“Once you are settled, we would be delighted to visit,” replied Sarah. “Isn’t that so, Molly? Perhaps Jessie would have an extra kitten for you.”
“Not in my kitchen,” growled Rosa. Molly’s smile faded. She dropped her head and bit her bottom lip. Rosa rolled her eyes. “All right, but only if you take care of it.”
Ace silently cursed at the gratitude on Molly’s face when she turned teary eyes to Rosa. To think that a damned kitten would mean so much to a child! But Molly had lost her family and her innocence, both violently.
“There’s a few kittens ready to leave their momma,” said Ace gently to the girl. “John Tanner’s looking for a couple to keep the mice down at the Mercantile. How about I bring Jessie back in a few days with a basket of them? You could choose yours first, if that meets Miss Rosa’s approval.”
Rosa scowled at him, but he also caught the wink. For some reason she wanted Molly to think she was anything but soft.
This time when the door closed behind Ace, the bolt moved gently into its slot. Jessie almost skipped beside him.
“I didn’t know choosing a hat could be fun,” she said. “Sarah explained all about the things Mrs. Dawes had. Ribbons and lace and everything.”
Ace’s heart lifted at hearing Jessie behave like a young woman for once. Jessie’s hand crept under his elbow. He patted her fingers and held her close.
“Do you think we have time for a kiss before lunch?”
He stopped at Jessie’s sensuous words and looked down at her. The hat suited her, pert and bright with a swath of net across her forehead that she could lift down if she wanted to be mysterious.
“I always have time to kiss my wife.”
She pursed her lips the same way she had that day in the hot spring, like an inexperienced virgin. The sparkle in her eyes proved she’d done it on purpose, daring him. He kissed her quickly on the cheek and set her walking again beside him. He shortened his steps so she could keep up with him.
“That wasn’t a kiss!”
“I’m hungry, wife. If we don’t get a seat soon, Sophie won’t have any left.” He looked at the sky. Clouds had drifted in while he and Doc talked. If he wanted a decent meal and still get home before the rain hit, they couldn’t waste time.
Jessie huffed but followed along. He planned to kiss her in the dining room in a way that would set Mrs. Jennett’s bombazine-covered chest heaving in outrage. Not that she would ever cross the threshold of anything as common as a hotel, of course.
When they passed the buggy, he noticed that Billy had put a bucket of water where the horse could easily reach. He’d ask Sophie to send a piece of pie out to the boy as an extra thank you. While he looked fairly well cared for, Ace remembered always being hungry when he was that size.
He noticed that Jessie automatically used her gloved fingers to gently lift her skirts to climb the stairs to the hotel. When they entered the anteroom and she released them, she set him a look daring him to comment. He winked, and she huffed.
The level of noise dropped for a moment when they
walked into the dining room, but it soon returned to full clatter. They found a table for two near the back and settled in. The food was delicious after the quick meals Henry prepared. Jessie’s manners were as proper as his, though her appetite was far heartier than most women. After all, she spent most the day in the saddle and, except for her generous curves, was mostly muscle.
All day, Jessie had acted as the perfect wife. She was polite, charming, and gracious. It was too good to be true. He leaned back, stirring his coffee. Sure enough, she had a calculating look, as if deciding how far to push him.
He knew she would test him. The previous time in town he’d humiliated her in front of the sheriff. He’d threatened her, insisting she show her respect by obeying him in public or he’d punish her. At the time, she thought he would beat her, though hurting her was the last thing he wanted to do.
Then Trace and Beth showed him how to do what was right for them and let everyone else go hang. Ace wasn’t sure what Beth and Amelia had said to Jessie before their wedding, but he figured he was going to find out soon. He stood up and held his hand out to assist her.
“Shall we go home, now?”
“I think not,” she replied. She smoothed her skirt, avoiding his eyes.
“There’s work to be done and it’s likely to rain.”
“I want to go to the Mercantile.”
She didn’t try to keep her voice down. Neither did he.
“We don’t need anything.”
She sent him an icy glare. “I ordered some throwing knives. They should be in.”
Just what he needed, his wife even better armed. He looked around the room. Quite a few men leaned back in their chairs, openly enjoying the show. Considering they had a snowball’s chance in hell of finding a wife, they were happy to enjoy someone else’s.
There was no better time for him to make a scene. He’d prove, to Jessie and the lazy louts, that he was the one who wore the pants in the Langford cabin. He knew his wife well enough by now to see that she was playing a game with him. The same game Beth and Trace enjoyed playing in public. He set his fists on his hips and put on his father’s most pompous expression.