Romance: Seducing The Quarterback

by Stacie Duncan

  “Father, you may believe that Jim is guilty, but I believe that he is innocent. As his soon to be wife it is my job to stand by him. I will prove his innocence if it’s the last thing I do!” I cringe inwardly at the fact that I dared to speak to my father in such a way. I expect him to explode, perhaps to throw me in jail for insubordination, but instead he sighs heavily and shakes his head.

  “Sara-May, follow me. I have something I need to show you.” He says, walking towards his office in the corner of the small building. I hesitate to follow him but when Sam starts to fuss I know that I need to get out of the main building before we upset Jim even more.

  My father points to a wooden chair in front of his desk.

  “Sit.” I do as he asks without question. Sam still clutched to my chest. My father walks around and sits behind his desk, then opens a drawer and fumbles inside it for a moment. “Sara-May, I want you to take a look at this.” He puts a wanted poster on the desk top. The corners of the poster are torn and the paper is discolored, but there, quite clearly in black and white, is a portrait of Jim. It looks identical to him, from his shaggy black hair to the small mole on his right cheek. I stare at it for a moment blankly before looking up at my father again.

  “What is this?” I ask as Sam reaches up and grabs a lock of my dark curled hair in his fingers and pulls it gently.

  “This is a wanted poster from four towns in Montana. Three other towns have been struck by the same man. Seven banks in total.” My father paused waiting for me to say something, but I can’t even open my mouth. “Gold, jewels, guns…he stole it all and he threatened to shoot anyone who tried to stop him.” Finally, I will myself to shake my head.

  “No…” My fingers trace the face on the poster and I shake my head again. “No, it couldn’t be. He wouldn’t do something like that, father.” He sighs loudly, more out of heartbreak for me than disappointment.

  “Sometimes, Sara-May, I wish that you would just listen to your father.” He says, the sadness in his voice is palpable.

  “Can I speak to him?” I ask. He is silent for a moment as he contemplates my request and then he shrugs.

  “If you must.” He gets up from his chair and leads me back to the small cells along the far wall of the jail. “You have a visitor!” He says, shouting to Jim.

  All of the cells in the jail but one is empty. There on the broken wooden bench in the corner of the last cell, sits Jim. He looks haggard already after less than half a day here. I smile when I see him and he smiles back, rushing over to the bars to be close to me.

  “I’ll leave you for a few minutes.” My father says and turns, walking back down the hall.

  “Sara-May!” Jim’s voice is breathy, scared. “Sara-May, I didn’t think he’d really do it! I didn’t think he’d really put me in here!”

  “He has evidence, Jim.” I grip his fingers with one hand as they clutch the bars.

  “What evidence could he possibly have of an innocent man?” Jim asks me, his eyes wide.

  “He has the wanted posters from four of the seven towns that were robbed. The man on the posters…” I can barely bring myself to say it out loud. “He looks just like you.” Jim’s forehead wrinkles deeply. “Identical to you, in fact.”

  “But it couldn’t be!” He says, shaking his head. “It wasn’t me! How could it be me when it wasn’t me?!” He starts to sound panicked and I grip my fingers tightly around his.

  “Perhaps…perhaps it was someone who looked like you?” I hear myself say. His expression flattens and his eyes squint.

  “Like my brother…” He says.

  “Your brother?” I ask. I didn’t know that he had any family at all, he never speaks of them and they have never put forth the effort to pay us a visit.

  “I have a twin brother, Sara-May. He looks just like me. It’s the only explanation that I can think of.” I find myself beginning to doubt his story. How can anyone have a twin brother and not speak of him all the time? “You have to believe me!” He says frantically.

  “Likely story!” My father’s voice comes from the end of the corridor. “I’ve heard it a million times before! It wasn’t me, it was my twin brother!” I look at Jim apologetically.

  “His name is John; you have to believe me! His name is John Carson!” Jim is shouting towards my father and I find myself backing away from the bars. Sam is beginning to fuss again.

  “I should go…” I can find no other excuse so I bounce Sam in my arm. “I need to get him home to be fed.” I say. Jim looks at me dejectedly. I want to tell him not to worry. I want to tell him that I believe him, but right at this very minute I just can’t.

  Chapter 4

  My head has been reeling all afternoon with thoughts of Jim. I want so badly to believe his story, to believe that somewhere out there is a man who looks just like him…but it seems so unlikely. But then again, if the man I love is truly a bank robber then where on Earth are all of the spoils of his labor? Our minimal lifestyle is hardly that of a bank robber and his soon to be wife.

  I clutch Sam to my breast until he has had his fill. When he finished suckling I set him in his crib. He has been cradled in my arm all afternoon and it’s nice to finally set him down. While Sam rests in the small nursery, I find myself lying on my bed. Every part of me feels drained. I know that I must do something to prove Jim’s innocence…but how can I do that when I don’t know that I believe him myself?

  “Come on Sara-May…just a peek?” He tugs at the top of my blouse and I squeal like a schoolgirl.

  “I would thank you to kindly keep your filthy paws off me, Mr. Carson!” I can’t hide my grin and Jim continues to tug at the neck of my blouse. This time his fingers catch the thread that laces it closed and it falls open. The neck, cutting just down to my ample cleavage is wide open and Jim is still pawing.

  “You could just take it off…” He says, licking his lips. I lean in and give him a peck.

  “I could…but I shan’t. I’m an honorable woman Mr. Carson and until we are married I will do no such thing.” Jim stands on his tiptoes and peeks down my shirt.

  “Well, it seems only fair that a man should get to feel his produce before he purchases it…” He jokes as he wraps his arms around me and pulls me in to him.

  “I am no such thing!” I say, maintaining my air of dignity.

  His hands slide down to my bottom and he squeezes my buttocks firmly in his hands. “Mmm hmm, nice and firm…” As he speaks, his warm breath brushes against my neck and my body begins to tingle.

  “Jim…” I know I should tell him to stop now, before things get too far out of hand, but I can’t bring myself to do it.

  “Let’s see here…” He grasps at my skirt, gathering it in his hands until it is up far enough to slide his hands underneath. He squeezes my buttocks again, this time with just the thin cotton of my undergarments between my skin and his touch. “Mmm hmm, still quite firm…” He says. Then he turns his face in to my neck and his lips touch my burning hot skin. It’s as though every part of me clenches at the same time and then suddenly releases. His touch does something to me that nothing else ever has.

  “Jim, we really shouldn’t!” I say. But he is already too far gone to hear me. Too deep in the throes of his lust for me. And I am too weak to say no.

  Jim bends over, he tosses me over his shoulder and marches in to the small bedroom of his house. I knew that I shouldn’t have come to see him alone again. I slap my hands gently against his buttocks.

  “Stop! Jim! What are you doing?!” I squeal, but never really intending one word of it. He throws me on to the bed which groans under the weight of my curves. Jim stands up straight and tears his shirt up over his head. I stare at his sun kissed flesh and the small dark patch of hair covering his chest. I have never seen a man quite so overtaken with passion before.

  “Don’t you want to be mine Sara-May?” He says to me in a singsong voice as he tugs my skirt down with one swift pull. As I lay on his bed with my shirt open and just my undert
hings on, I nod. How could I say no? I reach down to the hem of my blouse and lift myself just enough to peel it over my head. Then I slide my hands behind my back and unhook my brassiere. The relief as it slides down my arms, my large breasts finally free of its confinement, is enough to make me moan quietly. Quiet as it was, it’s enough to get Jim’s attention. He looks at me with a glint in his eye and bites down hard on his bottom lip. Then, in one fluid motion I fall back on to the bed and he tugs at my underthings.

  I am naked.

  I look up at Jim as he stares at me, completely absorbed in every curve of my naked body. I can’t help but want to cover myself. No man has ever seen me this way before. But the way that Jim looks at me tells me that he enjoys every inch of me. I watch him unbuckle his britches and drop them, along with his drawers, to the floor.

  The firm shaft between his legs stands upright, pointing towards me and I can’t tear my eyes away from it. I have never seen anything like it and I’ll be darned if I know what to do with it. Jim follows my gaze and then smiles.

  “Ever seen a man’s cock before, Sara-May?” He asks. I shake my head. What’s the use in lying when he’d find out anyway as soon as I asked him what to do with it? “Well” He says, wrapping his hand around it and shaking it gently in my direction, “this here is going to make you feel mighty fine.”

  Letting his hand drop from his cock, Jim climbs up on to the bed, pushing my legs apart with his knees. Just the touch of his skin against mine makes me tingle. I start to breathe faster as he leans down over me. I can feel that shaft pushing in to my skin. He rocks gently on top of me and it sinks in to the soft folds of skin on my stomach.

  “Ahh, that’s right…” He says, leaving his mouth open just slightly. “Sara-May? Would you like to feel a man’s cock inside you?” He asks. And I want to say no. I want to because I know I should. But I nod my head. I say yes instead. And then Jim smiles at me and rocks his body down a little further than before. Then I feel it. His cock pressing against my most intimate place. I can hear wetness and I don’t know where it’s coming from but it feels so good. He pushed harder against me and this time I feel him slip inside. “AH!” He says loudly as he pushes forward until his pelvis is touching my skin. Then he pulls backwards, sliding it out again. He starts a rhythm of pushing and pulling and each time I hear the sound of wetness.

  I can barely breathe as he starts to thrust in to me faster. My breasts jerk up and down each time he thrusts and I watch the look on his face of pure ecstasy. Never had I imagined that anything could feel so good. And then it happened. I began to feel even better. At first the rush of tingles that took over my body scared me. Every muscle I had pulled tight and I grasped at the bedclothes.

  “JIM!” I squealed his name, but before I could say anything else the most incredible feeling of heaven washed over me. The muscles in my most intimate place began to spasm as if they had a life of their own. Jim breathes heavily as he watches me fall limp. He continues to thrust in to me and then he jerks. His body stiffens. And I feel a warmth leaking inside of me like I have never felt before.

  A knock at the front door awakens me. I roll over in the same bed where Jim and I had first made love together and wait for a second knock. When it comes, I get up.

  Chapter 5

  Betsy stands on the front step. Her dark hair is quite disheveled and her eyes shift about nervously.

  “Betsy?” I step back and invite her inside. She looks around suspiciously before stepping in and waiting for me to shut the door behind her. “What’s going on?”

  “Sara-May, I heard from the dressmaker in town that Jim was in jail. She told me that there’s a rumor going around that it wasn’t Jim, but his brother John who committed those crimes.” I shake my head.

  “How can a rumor be going around when he was only taken to jail a few hours ago?” I ask her.

  “Talk moves fast in this town.” She says. “But, I had a look around your father’s office when I got home and I found a letter from the sheriff in Butte. He wrote that he is sure he saw the suspect of the robberies in town there not a couple of weeks ago. They haven’t had a robbery yet though so there’s a chance he might still be there if what Jim is saying is true…”

  “Wait…my father had this letter and threw Jim in jail anyway? Why would he do that?” I can’t believe that my father would do such a thing unless he was really trying to keep Jim and me apart. I had proposed it as a theory to Betsy before, but I hadn’t actually believed it. My father wasn’t that type of man…at least, he hadn’t been until now.

  Betsy grabs my upper arms with her hands and looks at me sternly. “I can’t tell you why he did it, Sara-May. I’m sure he had good reason. But if you want to prove him wrong and if anyone is going to prove Jim’s innocence it’s going to have to be you. You’re going to have to go to Butte.” The idea of traveling anywhere alone is terrifying, but Betsy is right. I’m the only one who can do this.

  “What about Sam?” I ask.

  “I’ll take care of him tonight. I’ll tell your father that you needed to rest and I’ll take Sam back to the house with me.” I agree. I can’t very well take him with me on a night ride to Butte. “I’ll get one of your father’s horses saddled up for you in the stables. You get yourself ready and come to the house with Sam when you are. But hurry, there isn’t much time until your father gets home.”

  I don’t need much to get ready, and no more than thirty minutes after Betsy has left, I am trekking the same path to my father’s house. When I get there I find her waiting to take Sam and one of the stable boys holding the reigns to a large black horse. I hand over Sam and take a deep breath before lifting myself on to the back of the gigantic creature. It huffs loudly through its nose when I settle in the saddle and I pat its neck firmly.

  “Hush, girl.” She seems to listen as I turn her to face the road out of town. I call back to Betsy. “I’ll be back by morning!” And she lifts her hand in a wave.

  I’ve never been to Butte. In fact, I’ve never been anywhere else other than our small town in Montana. I know the way though from the number of men who ride in to town from that direction. Mostly gold prospectors and miners, but they always came from the west. Now I just have to hope that they have a signpost so that I know when I get there. And once I get there, it’s just going to be a matter of finding a man who looks exactly like my husband to be. How hard could that be?

  Chapter 6

  By the time I dismount from my horse, I can already feel the blisters growing on my backside. At least there had been a big wooden signpost for Butte though. I had expected the town to be much bigger, but when I got there it looked no bigger than home. Their main street was almost identical to our own and even the people looked similar.

  The sun would be going down soon. Tying my father’s horse to a large wooden post outside the saloon, I decide to start my search there. I don’t know much about criminals, but I can only assume that they would spend their time in local saloons with other ne’er do wells.

  “Hey pretty lady!” I whip my head around and see a dirty faced man staring at me.

  “Hello.” I say nothing else for fear of inviting interaction, but he seems to take my greeting as an invitation anyway.

  “What’s a nice girl like you doin’ in a place like this?” He asks. I glance at the saloon door just feet away.

  “Looking for someone actually.” I try to sound confident, but I’m pretty sure he’s not going to buy it.

  “Oh really? Any particular someone?” He asks as he takes a stumbling step forward.

  “Yes, as a matter of fact, John Carson.” As soon as I say John’s name, the man’s eyes grow wider than two dinner plates and he starts to walk backwards.

  “Forgive me ma’am, I didn’t know…” He trips over his own feet and begins crawling away in a cloud of brown dust.

  “Whatcha lookin’ for Carson for?” The voice comes from the doors of the saloon. I turn around and see a rather tall man with a dark black moustac
he.

  “Family business.” I manage to say. How I wish Jim had accompanied me here.

  “Whose family is that then?” The man says.

  “His own.” I say bravely. Squaring my shoulders, I take a step closer to the saloon door.

  “Hmm…” The man eyes me up and down and then jerks his head towards the swinging doors. “You better go inside then.”

  The inside of the saloon was smoky and looking around the room quickly I notice that all of the men appear to look the same. Each one has a thick moustache and wears a western hat. I scan the room once more and then I see him. There, sitting at a poker table with a stack of chips as high as his head, is the spitting image of Jim.

  “Hey Carson!” The man from outside the bar comes back in. “You got a lady caller.” The men in the bar begin to whoop and holler and I can feel my cheeks getting hot. “Says she’s here about family.” Suddenly the whooping and hollering stops and all heads bow down to focus on their beer mugs. All except one.

  “Is that so?” His voice sounds just like Jims. “I’m afraid I don’t know you.” He says, glaring at me with those two big brown eyes.

  “But I know your brother.” I manage to say, my voice only slightly wavering.

  “Hmph.” He grunts and stands up from the table with a warning glance at his fellow players. They all hold their hands up and back away from the table. “You better come with me.”

  I follow John hesitantly in to a small back room. It looks like the kind of place that might once have been host to a stage show. John sits down at a table in the darkest corner of the room. I follow and sit across from him. I can barely hide my terror as my hands shake.

  “So…” He leans across the table. “You know my brother?” He asks. I nod my head.

  “Yes. We are…were to be married. We have a child.” I feel him looking at me, leering at me.