by Treva Harte
Well, if Primary thought she was that desperate, he was wrong. Arness stared at him and then smiled through gritted teeth. "Who said I’d be lonely? Go on, Primary. She's probably halfway to the ranch by now."
Primary blew her a kiss.
"I do love you, Arness. Really." He was pounding down the stairs a split second later.
He left. He really was gone.
Arness' chin quivered just like some soft, citified female who would be foolish enough to cry over a man.
* * * * *
Salla hesitated on the last step as she saw the curious eyes staring at her. For a moment she almost thought about going back up again. Nonsense. That would be even worse.
She lifted her chin and called across the crowded saloon. "Secondary, take me back to the ranch."
"Ah—" For once Secondary looked at a loss. "What about—"
He shut up.
"If you won't take me back, I'll go alone."
"No, no, no. Don't do that. I-um-"
Before he could untangle his sentence, the saloon doors swung open. Everyone turned to see the new arrival. He was tall, his blond hair dripping from the still pouring rain. He staggered a little as he pushed another bound man before him.
"Adan!" Salla ran to him, ignoring the fact that they'd scarcely spoken two words to each other before. "Adan, you can take me home."
"What?" Adan's usually intelligent face looked unusually blank. "Why're you and Secondary here?"
Salla reached up her hands to his shoulders to shake the stupidity from that handsome face.
"Never mind that. Take me back!" Desperately she said something she never thought she'd ever say. "I order you, pet!"
The clatter on the stairs made Salla whirl to face her new threat.
Primary had never looked more overwhelming as he did looming over her on the stairs, his hair rumpled and his leggings rolled down low at his hips. She could feel herself get a little moist at just the sight. Call her weak.
"What do you want, varlet?" Salla hissed.
She might be weak, but she wasn't easy. She didn't share any better than Arness did.
"I told you she said var-let before," someone on the bar stool muttered, a little too loudly.
Without a word, Primary stalked over to her, pulled her away from Adan and then punched Adan in the jaw. Adan staggered back and fell into the bar counter.
"What?" Adan asked, plaintively and a little woozily. "What?"
"You. I want you," Primary held out a hand to Salla.
Salla punched him in the stomach. Her hand hurt from the blow. He didn't even twitch.
Curse the man! Salla looked, saw nothing handy, and pulled off her muddy trail boot to hit him. She aimed it for Primary's face. He deflected it easily. Of course if Primary could knock a big man like Adan down, he was impervious to anything she could do.
"Salla, don't." Primary took her by the shoulders. His voice trembled. "You're killing me."
"What do you mean?" Salla asked.
He sounded so sincere, so truly pained.
"I can't stand for you to be this angry with me. I love you."
"You love me and Arness and any other likely female who happens your way, you mean." Salla bared her teeth. "Why don't you go back to your hussy mistress and her bed? In fact, take Secondary along with you. I'm sure all three of you would have your usual good time."
"You're the one fondling Adan!"
"I was fondl-uh, that's right! After all, Mama bought him for me. He's my pet. I guess I can fondle him if I want!" Salla stamped her foot.
She could learn to do more than like Adan with a bit of work. Why not? Everyone else thought he was perfect for her. Probably she could get used to owning a gorgeous pet. Why not take the easy way for once?
Primary's fingers bit into her shoulders.
"I can't let you go, Salla." She could see his jaw set.
Salla braced herself for anything. She glared at him. Primary glared back.
"I'll take care of you later, bastard. I'd do it now but there's something more important to take care of." Adan snarled the words behind them, fully back to his senses and looking angry enough to spark a fire. "What in perdition have you done with Arness?"
He didn't wait for an answer but charged up the stairs, three at a time, leaving a trail of water and mud.
Salla continued her attempt to stare Primary down. Primary didn't flinch.
"If you force me, you'll be sorry," Salla warned.
He winked at her instead. "I like how you've gotten rid of one shoe, darling. Let's see what else we can take off upstairs."
Salla gaped at the change in tactics. Before she could recover, she was swung over his shoulder as if she hadn't issued any warning.
Salla pounded hard on his back. Kicked his chest.
"Huh."
At least she got a grunt out of that.
"Once you let me down, I'll make you sorry!" Salla growled.
"Darling, I came to get you. I made a choice. Doesn't that count for something?" Primary asked as they made their way up the stairs.
Salla's fists unclenched.
"I—" Salla stopped. "Oh."
She hadn't thought of his sudden appearance quite like that.
"Now stop hitting me. We're going to do this properly." Primary paused for a moment at the top of the stairs. "As soon as I figure out where we're going."
* * * * *
"So he's taking her back to the other woman then?" Mistress Babs asked.
"Looks like," one of her patrons answered.
"Hmmm."
"What is a var-let?" a bystander at the bar asked, plaintively.
"Sounds like it means a really lucky man," the first woman said, paused and rethought. "Or a real idiot."
"I'm just wondering what he means by doing things properly. Ain't seen nothing proper about this yet." Mistress Babs looked around. "Curse it all! Where is that Secondary?"
"Maybe he's up in the bedroom, too, like the little gal suggested."
Mistress Babs scowled and then asked, "And what are we going to do with the fellow that other one left on the floor?"
* * * * *
Arness sniffled hard and stood up. She ought to leave—but only a fool left in the middle of the night in the rain with bushwhackers about.
"They'll have to find their own place to stay. This is my room," Arness said aloud. She drew the line at giving up her bed to let the two of them cavort in it.
The door flung open again. Arness turned.
"Prim-Secondary?" She goggled for a moment. "Why are you here—oh, never mind that! I'm so glad to see you!"
He was young and strong and his face was twisted with worry. Worry over her?
There was more to Secondary than she thought. Oh, Goddess. Why not admit the truth? Men were humans. All of them. More complicated, more contrary, more intelligent than she'd ever wanted to give them credit for.
Now that she really knew and appreciated what men were like, she was about to be left without any.
She flung herself into Secondary's arms and finally allowed herself to cry.
"Mistress, oh, Mistress, don't," Secondary murmured. He began to pat her back. "I don't quite understand, but you know you'll always have me as your pet. I'm here for you."
Pet.
"No. No, I won't. I told Primary he wasn't my pet and now I'm telling you the same thing. You're free. Free to be a man, Secondary." Arness began to cry again.
Secondary dropped his arms from her and gasped. In another moment he had fallen to his knees in front of her and begun to sob too.
"What's wrong with me, Mistress? I know I displeased you before, but I'll do better! I promise!" He paused, snuffled a little and then hastily buried his head in between her legs. His muffled voice said, "Let me show you, Mistress. I'll make you scream with delight. I can do it."
"Not with her you can't!" a new voice yelled through the open door.
* * * * *
"I'm not coming out!" Salla called.
She knew she was an idiot. Who else would hide herself in a closet and then brace her legs against the door?
"Salla, be reasonable!"
On the other hand what other place did she have to hide? Primary had set her down in the hall once they both realized they had no room to go to. Salla hadn't hesitated to take her chance to escape.
She'd run to the nearest open door, thrown herself inside and slammed it shut. It wasn't her fault it was a closet.
Her breath came a little too fast. The manuscripts had described males when they were uncontrolled and angry. Maybe she read too much but she could imagine a ferociously angry Primary. He-he might do anything to her!
Salla tried to ignore the naughty little tingle she got at the idea.
* * * * *
He was an idiot. You didn't run after females and demand they listen to you. He was lucky Salla had just run away instead of demanding his punishment. If he calmed down things would work much better. You deferred to a female, you didn't allow your own will to interfere with her desires. If he simply stayed reasonable—
His fist hurt from pounding on the door. His head hurt with baffled rage. Everything he'd learned about control and obedience wasn't working this time.
Because this wasn't a female with whom he could just meekly agree. This was Salla. His Salla.
She was young and reckless and in love with him. He knew that. What he didn't know was how to behave himself if she recklessly left him in a youthful huff.
He wasn't a pet. He'd told Arness that before but hadn't understood what happened once he accepted it as true.
Now the realization was inescapable. He was a man and all his control was gone. Other emotions were sweeping over him. He-he had needs, too, perdition take him! Needs that Salla was heedlessly ignoring. Foolishly ignoring.
He knew what they both needed and he was going to make her understand what they had to do next.
* * * * *
"I can't believe I refused a sane woman for you!"
"You can always change your mind and go back to her then!"
"Enough of this nonsense. Salla, stand away from the door."
She heard the first rattling thump at the door. Salla hastily pulled her feet away just as Primary kicked it open.
“I ought to spank you!” Primary growled.
He paused as they stared at each other.
“Oh.” Salla swallowed. She was sure her eyes were already as wide as they could stretch.
My word, tell a man he wasn't a pet and look what happened! All those old-fashioned depictions of domineering heroes must be historically accurate after all. Primary looked ready to kill.
Ohh.
Primary scowled more deeply.
"I'm not going to have our first time in a closet, woman," he growled.
"We're not having a first time, so—"
The bastard kissed her. It was so unfair. His mouth, his tongue, even his breath on her made her forget everything but kissing him. When he lifted her up, Salla embarrassed herself by burying her face in his bare chest and sighing against it. When she did, just like that, all the ferocity seemed to melt away from Primary. What was left still seemed plenty exciting. Salla brushed her fingers just lightly over his stiffened cock.
"You've forgiven me," he whispered.
"I—well, I'm not as angry," Salla hedged.
Primary laughed and pushed another door open, more gently this time, with his foot. As he carried her into the room, Primary snorted.
"Well, this isn't quite as bad as some of the places I was in when I was at the pleasure house but it's none too good. Let me—"
"If you start tidying this room instead of having sex with me, Primary, I really will injure you." Salla began to laugh. "At least it's dark in here. I probably won't see anything too messy."
He opened the curtains to the room and soft red moonlight entered.
"I want to be able to see you clearly when you take your clothes off, " he said right before he kissed her.
Salla sighed against his lips and then made a discovery.
"Your hands are trembling, Primary."
"I'm nervous. Now that I'm not angry, I'm terrified."
"I'm the virgin here, silly."
"I know." He kissed her again. "But I want everything to be right for you. I want—"
He fumbled in his legging pockets and brought out a small jar.
"What's that?" Salla asked.
"Oil. If it works for new captures, it should work for you." Primary tilted the contents of the jar onto the palm of one hand.
"Are you grooming me for market?"
"I'm going to oil you and ready you for me," Primary answered. Drops of oil dripped slowly from his fingertips.
"Oh." The idea sounded intriguing. "Shall I strip for you? New captures always show up on the ranch almost naked."
Primary almost dropped the jar.
"Uh. Yes. Yes, you definitely should."
Salla pulled off her remaining trail boot. She wondered if she would ever find her first one. This didn't seem like the time to search for it. She stripped off her socks and unbuttoned her trail shirt. Salla paused before removing it, a little nervous herself. What did men do when they saw a naked woman? More importantly, what would Primary do?
"Wait." Primary's voice sounded odd. "We'll do this slowly."
What if he didn't like what he saw? She was small. Small breasts. Small—
One slippery male finger stroked from her neck down to one breast and then, even more slowly, under the shirt to touch one taut nipple. Salla sighed at the feel of the roughened finger and the slick oil, warmed by Primary's body. She looked down. Even in the moonlight, she could tell the nipple glistened.
"Beautiful," Primary whispered. He bent his head, nudging the shirt aside, to suck on the other nipple. Salla sighed and tipped her head back to allow more access to his tongue. "Mine. No one else's. I never thought I would like that."
He sounded possessive. He sounded like the males she'd read about but never met. Salla sighed. Some part of her was beginning to like this old-fashioned role more and more.
His fingers moved down further to the fastening of her leggings. Salla pushed his hand aside to unlace them herself. They both watched them slip past her narrow hips and down to the floor.
Salla doubted the oil could make her any more slick and ready than she felt right then.
His actions might be unnecessary, but that didn't keep her from sobbing with joy when Primary placed her on the bed and, leaning over her, spread her open to gently drip more oil directly on her clitoris.
As the first warmed drop touched her sensitive flesh, Salla screamed in shock and delight.
* * * * *
Arness barely had time to register who the unexpected person was before she was pulled up in the air as if she were some feminine lightweight. The intruder nudged the kneeling Secondary face down on the floor as he stepped over him. Arness gave one solid jab with her elbow into her interruption's midriff.
"What are you doing here, bastard?" Arness hissed.
She was pulled tight against a hard body. Arness refused to enjoy the feeling.
"What are you doing…woman?"
"What I please. Or do you think I now have to call you master?" Arness twisted in Adan's hold but, annoyingly, couldn't free herself. "Seeing as you ran away from me—"
"I never ran from you!" Adan sounded genuinely upset by the accusation.
"Oh? Then how did you disappear? Did an earthquake swallow you up?" Arness managed to get in one fierce kick to his shin, even though the blow hurt her heel. What was it about Adan that made her lose her usual calm control? "You-you varlet!"
"I had important work to do, woman! Curse you, stop your hitting. You might injure something you want to use later. And what's a varlet?"
"You don't have anything I could possibly want, you white-haired bastard-" Arness paused when she realized he was holding her more stiffly than he should. "Goddess, are you actua
lly hurt?"
He let her turn then and, to her own disgust, she found herself holding him tightly. Goddess, she had to admit he did feel wonderful-all smooth young body, sleek muscle and fast-beating heart. She didn't even mind his smile when he realized what she was doing.
"You're bruised," Arness said. "What have you been doing, idiot man?"
"Well, before Primary punched me I was taking care of some unfinished business," Adan said. He brushed some hair from her face. "I have a lot of bruises from several fights. Would you like me to show you each of my hurts?"
She absently swatted at him.
"What unfinished business?" She didn't want to think about why Primary had hit Adan.
"I have Merdeath tied up downstairs…"
"You have who tied up?"
"I was taking the bastard back to the ranch when I stopped here to get some food. Imagine how fascinated I was to be told you and Primary and Salla had been together all this time."
"Never mind about that. It's not important. Tell me more about Merdeath." Arness gave him a smile. He didn't return it. "Please?"
His narrowed eyes told her that he was going to bring the unimportant subject up later, but he answered her plea.
"I planned to kill Merdeath myself but it occurred to me that he might be more useful as an example to others. Then I decided someone else would know what to do with him better than I would. You. Do you want the honor of slitting his throat? He's my present to you."
Arness felt a prickle of fear crawl over her at the thought of seeing Merdeath again and then another, stronger rush of glee at how she'd see him. Adan had brought her quite a gift.
"I thought you'd run away, Adan. Back to the bush."
His reappearance was even better than being gifted with a helpless Merdeath.
"I thought I'd run, too. I'd planned to stop just long enough to kill Merdeath before the rain washed his tracks away and then disappear forever."
"Why didn’t you leave?"
"Why didn't I, Arness?" He kissed the pulse at her throat. Kissed it again. “You captured me. Curse you, I can’t leave. Even when I find you with another man.”
Arness wasn't sure what to say. She wound her fingers into that white hair instead and moved to kiss him.