THE COWBOY'S RULES: 3: THE SURPRISE (Cowboys After Dark Book 6)

by Maggie Carpenter

“Why do you look so worried?” Chad asked, picking up a second sandwich.

  “Worried? I do?” she replied, staring back at him feigning innocence.

  “Yes, you do, and you know you do. Am I gonna to like this surprise?”

  “I hope so,” she sighed, I really do hope so.

  “Maybe I should be the one that’s worried,” he chuckled. “Please don’t tell me you’re havin’ the house remodeled while we’re gone.”

  “No, no, I’m definitely not having the house remodeled, and that’s a crazy thought. You’re building us a new house, remember? Why would I remodel the old one?”

  “Damn, I must be tired, you’re right.”

  “You can stop trying to guess and you can stop asking me questions, because I’m not going to tell you anything else,” she exclaimed.

  “I see,” he said, finishing his beer. “Cassandra Davidson has spoken.”

  “Don’t mock me,” she pouted. “I’m serious. I don’t want to tell you. I want it to be a surprise.”

  “Fair enough,” he smiled. “I take it things would be better if we didn’t go back until Tuesday, or is it Wednesday. Were you plannin’ on findin’ a reason to keep me away till then?”

  “Kind of,” she mumbled.

  “What, exactly, were you gonna do? You can tell me that much. I love how that mind of yours works.”

  “I was going to disable the van,” she confessed.

  “Disable the van?” he repeated, his eyes wide. “Isn’t that a bit drastic?”

  “Desperate measures,” she smiled shrugging her shoulders. “I’m really glad this came out. It’s going to save me a lot of trouble.”

  “Apparently, and me too, running around lookin’ for a mechanic.”

  “Are you mad?” she asked softly, leaning across the tale and running her fingertips over his hand.

  “I’m not sure. Should I be? I’m not mad I’m doin’ the show, not at all. You were lucky though, that Mandy hurt her…wait…did Mandy hurt her back?”

  Cassie dropped her eyes and stared at the table.

  “I asked you a question, young lady, did Mandy hurt her back, or has this all been part of the scheme to get me away from the ranch?”

  “It’s one piece of the big picture,” she admitted, her voice barely audible. “Just one small piece. You needed to do this.”

  Standing up from the table Chad strode to the refrigerator and pulled out another beer. Cassie, having no idea what to say or do, stayed where she was, eyes fixated on the table top.

  “I know why you did it,” he said, his voice calm and even.

  Turning around she looked across at him.

  “You do?”

  “Yep. You felt me slippin’ away…us…slippin’ away. You saw me driftin’ into a quagmire, takin’ on too much, gettin‘ too stressed. You wanted me to get back to what I love doin’…be the man you met a year ago. Am I right?”

  “Uh-huh,” she nodded. “Things were upside-down and getting worse. I thought if you did your show again it would help you, and it has.”

  Chad put his bottle of beer on the counter, moved slowly across to her, and reaching down he pulled her to her feet, gripping her tightly by her upper arms.

  “I should spank you into next week for pullin’ a stunt like this,” he growled, “and I would if I wasn’t so hell-fired grateful that you did.”

  “What?” she squeaked.

  “Damn, what you did…what you’ve done…you are one amazin’ woman, you know that?”

  “Not really,” she muttered.

  “Now that I will spank you for. You told me a year ago that I’d saved you. You remember?”

  “Uh-huh,” she nodded.

  “I think you just saved me, so don’t let me hear you say you’re not somethin’ special, ‘cos, honey, you are, you’re somethin’ real special,” then moving his hands to clutch her hair, he locked her eyes, “and don’t you forget it, you hear me?”

  “Yes, Sir,” she managed.

  His eyes were piercing hers, and for a moment she couldn’t breathe, then he lowered his head, and brushing her lips he kissed her lightly.

  “I don’t even know…” he began, then suddenly letting out an odd grunt he lifted her off her feet, carried into the bedroom and laying her on the bed he rested his body on top of her.

  Abruptly moving his lips to her neck he began nibbling, sending shockwaves of need through her sex, then sliding down her body he unzipped her jeans and pushed them hurriedly down her legs.

  “You…” he growled, hastily dropping his own jeans to rest around his thighs.

  “Yes?” she moaned, as he fell back on top of her.

  “You, be quiet,” he said huskily, “unless you wanna scream, then you can scream.”

  Placing his cock against her he thrust forward and began fucking her with gusto, his belt jangling as he stroked. He was taking her, owning her, possessing her, and she cried out as his cock thundered forward. His lips were devouring her neck, and when his hands dropped to her chest and ripped open her shirt, popping the buttons with one, fierce tug, she heard herself cry out in alarm, then moan with pleasure as his mouth began consuming her breasts.

  Grabbing her wrists he pulled them up, laying them on either side of her head, pinning them into the mattress, and gazing at her he paused, locking her eyes.

  “You feel me inside you?” he panted.

  “Totally,” she whispered.

  “You feel me takin’ you?”

  “I do.”

  “You know where it comes from?”

  She paused, unsure.

  “Say it, you know, say it,” he insisted.

  “From your love, your heart,” she breathed.

  “That’s right. When I possess you like this, when I spank you, when I hug you, when I scold you, when I fuck you, it’s all from my heart.”

  “Why are you telling me this?” she mumbled, feeling a wave of emotion.

  “Because what you did, and whatever it is that you’re doin’, it’s from, your love, your heart.”

  “Chad,” she muttered, “of course.”

  “And that makes me crazy for you…crazy in so many ways.”

  His mouth moved across hers, and as his cock started anew, stroking her with slow, determined thrusts, she felt his need for her as clearly as she felt hers for him. She raised her chest, begging for his lips, moaning as she felt the shadow of her climax.

  “You’re gonna come hard for me,” he mumbled, “you’re gonna come so fuckin’ hard.”

  His words sent a sparking surge of energy into her sex, and when he accelerated, pumping his cock with a powerful urgency, she felt the tingling promise.

  “Yes, I am, I am,” she breathed.

  “Now, Cassie,” he commanded, “you come for me right now.”

  His voice echoed around her brain as the orgasm began shooting pins and needles through her limbs. She could feel his cock exploding inside her as his fingers grasped her wrists…then moments later, flaccid and spent, he fell beside her, his heart hammering as he tried to catch his breath.

  “What was that?” she gasped.

  “Ever hear of Huey Lewis and The News?” he panted.

  “What? Of course,” she stammered, rolling into him.

  “That was the power of love,” he panted. “Listen to the lyrics sometime.”

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  After drifting off into a serious power nap, they both woke up fresh and revived. As they sat in the kitchen finishing the crockpot of chicken and dumplings, Cassie idly picked up the note from Rose Thomas that had been left with the sandwiches.

  “The Thomas’s are such a lovely couple,” she remarked. “Are you going to help her with her horse before we leave?”

  “I’m happy to help her,” Chad nodded. “but I’m not going to let her exchange it for the cost of the cabin.”

  “Call me crazy but-” she began, studying the note.

  “Happy to do that as well,” he interrupted. “I can’t beli
eve you were gonna disable the van. How exactly?”

  “I have no idea, unscrew something, pull off a cable, no idea,” she admitted sheepishly, “but getting back to Rose, I have a thought.”

  “Yep, I’m sure you do. You have more thoughts than a leopard has spots,” he chuckled.

  “Are you complaining?” she quipped.

  “Hell no, I love your thoughts, all of them, the madcap and the not so madcap. Go ahead, what’s your thought?”

  “If she’s willing, why don’t you bring Rose and her horse into your show tomorrow afternoon? Drop the first or second half, and put that in its place.”

  Chad chewed thoughtfully, drank a mouthful of his coffee, and leaned back in his chair.

  “Damn, Cassie, that’s a great suggestion. Let me think about this a second. I’ll need Mandy’s help, but since there’s nothin’ wrong with her I can’t see that as a problem,” he remarked, shooting her a look.

  “Why do you need Mandy?” she asked, pretending not to notice the slightly scolding glint in his eye.

  “I don’t want the horses standing out in the afternoon with so many people around, and I’ll need someone to help you load them and get them settled into the rig while I’m changin’ and starting the second half.”

  “Ah, right,” she nodded. “So you’d close with it?”

  “For sure. I don’t want them hangin’ around waitin’ that long to perform. They’d probably be fine, but I’d rather let them do their thing, then relax.”

  “That makes sense,” she nodded. “Chad, I’m excited, this will be great.”

  “First things, first,” he said pulling out his phone. “I’ll call Rose and see if she’s up for it.”

  Rose Thomas, a slightly overweight, greying woman in her fifties, was stirring a bubbling pot of berries, sugar and pectin. Her three-berry jam was legendary, and she wanted to make a batch to give to Chad Douglas before he left. When the phone rang it was her husband, Clyde, who bore a startling resemblance to his wife, that answered then excitedly offered it to her.

  “It’s him,” he smiled, “Chad Douglas. He wants to talk to you.”

  “It is? My goodness,” she exclaimed, and giving the stirring duties to him, a chore he’d done many times over the years, she took the phone from his hand.

  “Hello, this is Rose Thomas.”

  “Hello, Mrs. Thomas. Thank you for all the wonderful food you’ve been kind enough to provide. It’s been a Godsend.”

  “Mr. Douglas, it’s my pleasure, my pleasure indeed,” she beamed.

  “Please, call me, Chad,” he insisted.

  “And you must call me, Rose,” she replied. “How can I help you?”

  “I have a proposition for you,” he began.

  Rose listened carefully, slowly sitting down, not quite believing what she was being asked, then taking a deep breath she said, “Would you hold on a moment please? My husband is right here and I’d like to run it by him.”

  Holding her hand over the mouthpiece, her eyes wide, she stared at her husband of thirty plus years and shook her head.

  “Clyde, I can barely contain myself. Wait until I tell you what Chad Douglas just asked me to do.” Breathlessly bubbling out the information, she ended up back on her feet. “Can you imagine? Me? In the middle of that arena with Chad Douglas?”

  “Tell him, yes, quick, don’t keep the man waitin’,” Clyde grinned.

  “I’d be thrilled, Mr. uh, Chad,” she said excitedly. “You just tell me what to do.”

  “What’s your horse’s name?”

  “Willow,” Rose replied.

  “Tomorrow morning I’ll load Willow into my van and transport her with my horses over to the fairgrounds. Your name will be on a list at the security gate. Just come on by about thirty minutes before the start of the show.”

  “Uh, Willow’s not real good about getting on trailers,” she said, embarrassed that her horse was so uncooperative.

  “You leave that to me,” Chad grinned. “Willow will be just fine.”

  “My goodness, isn’t this one for the books,” she exclaimed. “Thank you, thank you very much.”

  “It’s me who’s grateful,” Chad replied. “You’ve given me a terrific way to end this tour, and an opportunity to dip my toe in the water of next year’s show.”

  “It’s a go?” Cassie asked as he ended the call.

  “It’s a go,” he nodded. “I have just enough time to call Mandy before we have to leave. Isn’t she in for a surprise?”

  “Don’t be mad at her,” Cassie said urgently. “I talked her into it.”

  “Hey, I’m not mad at anyone,” he smiled, “especially not Mandy. Besides, I know how persuasive you can be. You could sell stripes to a zebra.”

  “Funny,” she quipped.

  “But true,” he retorted.

  As she stood up to clear the table she heard her cell phone ringing. It was still sitting on the dresser, and leaving the dishes she hurried into the bedroom; picking it up she was delighted to see it was Hannah.

  “Perfect, I can tell her all the news,” she muttered as she answered the call. “Hey, Hannah, how is everything?”

  “Cassie, not so good,” her friend whimpered.

  “What’s happened?” she asked, panic gripping her chest. “Please tell me it’s not the horses.”

  “No, it’s me, it’s me and this stupid catering thing.”

  “Oh, no,” I knew this would happen.

  “I can’t handle it. It’s too much. It’s fifty people, cakes and appetizers and…Cassie I lost my temper today, I yelled at Marty for no reason. He’s comin’ home soon and the place is an absolute mess, way worse than when you saw it. I don’t know what to do, and Cassie, I almost bought a pack of cigarettes today.”

  Cassie sat down on the edge of the bed and took a deep breath.

  “Hannah, you need to tell Marty exactly what you just told me,” she said firmly.

  “But, he’s so proud of me, I feel like I’m letting him down.”

  “There’s some kind of virus going around,” Cassie declared, “and it’s called, taking on too muchitis.”

  “Sorry, what are you saying?” Hannah asked.

  “It’s just something that hit me. It seems as if everyone is trying to do too much. I’m calling it, taking on too muchitis. Chad had it too but he’s seen the light. Trust me, Marty will be more proud of you if you admit that you’re overwhelmed and ask him for help, than he will if you make your lives together crazy because of this stupid party.”

  “I guess,” she mumbled. “I just feel so foolish. I should have known.”

  “Stop being so hard on yourself, and stop spinning your wheels. Take a deep breath, grab a glass of wine and sit down for five minutes. I’ll bet you haven’t stopped for days. I’m sorry I put the horses on your back. I shouldn’t have done that.”

  “You didn’t. I haven’t even been up there,” she confessed, her voice cracking. “That guy, Eddie, he’s been doing it all. I feel guilty about that too, I miss them. Shit, Cassie, what have I done?”

  Cassie heard her break into tears, and shook her head.

  “Hannah, take a deep breath and listen to me. Do what I said, grab some wine, sit down, and wait for Marty to come home. Tell him everything you just told me. This will be okay, I promise. This will all be okay.”

  “I love cooking, and catering lunch for the clinics, that was fun, but this party…what was I thinking?” she sobbed.

  “Now you know, Hannah. You’ve tried something and realized it isn’t for you. That’s a great thing. That’s how we find out what we want in life. Sometimes it’s like Coca Cola.”

  “Huh? What do you mean?” Hannah sniffled.

  “The guy who wrote the formula for Coca Cola said that what made it so unique, wasn’t what he put in it, but what he left out,” Cassie explained, knowing the odd comment would cause her friend to pause and think, and would hopefully stop her tears. “Finding out what we don’t want, is just as important as
finding out what we do.”

  “Cassie?”

  “Yes, Hannah?”

  “Who are you?”

  “What?”

  “How do you know all this stuff? This isn’t the crazy Cassie I grew up with.”

  “Maybe,” she sighed,”I’ve grown up and fallen in love with a Superhero.”

  “Cassie…I’m so sorry I was mean to you the other day, and what you’re doing for Chad…my gosh…it’s amazing.”

  “I hope Chad thinks it’s amazing,” she replied.

  “What do you hope I’ll think is amazing?” Chad asked, walking in.

  “Hannah, I have to go, you do what I said, okay? Talk to Marty.”

  “I will, thanks so much.”

  Ending the call, Cassie stood up and dropped the phone in her pocket.

  “Are we ready to go?” she asked.

  “What do you hope, I will think, is amazing?” he slowly repeated.

  “You know I can’t tell you, it’s the surprise,” she said firmly.

  “Sassy Cassie,” he grinned, moving over to her, “you know I’m gonna spank you when we get back.”

  “How could I possibly forget?” she quipped rolling her eyes. “You remind me every five minutes.”

  “Every five minutes?” he grinned. “You sure about that?”

  “It seems like it,” she replied. “Can we go now?”

  “Yep, we can go now. I assume that was Hannah.”

  “Yes, that was Hannah. Poor thing has your virus, taking on too muchitis, but I’ve convinced her to sit down and talk to Marty, tell him she’s at a loss and totally overwhelmed.”

  “You know, Cassie, that was good advice. Sittin’ down and talkin’ is a good idea, sometimes even better than persuadin’ people to do things, movin’ them around like pieces on a chess board, you get my drift?”

  “If I had suggested you pull Mandy from her shows this weekend and take her place, you wouldn’t have done it,” she insisted.

  “Maybe, maybe not, and I’m not mad, but we are gonna talk about this later,” he promised, “right now, though we have to leave. You ready?”

  “Yes, Chad, I’m ready,” she smiled, “and just for the record, you’ll never convince me that talking would have ended up with you in that arena tonight.”