Cowboy Way

by Cindy Sutherland

  “I wasn’t hitting on you!”

  “What do you call it, then, Mike?” Ryan’s voice was calm, and you would have thought he was just having a normal, everyday conversation with a friend. “What do you call it when you touch someone all the time, when you flirt and try to kiss them?”

  Mike looked defeated for a moment. But denial is a powerful thing, and he wasn’t quite ready to give up yet.

  “I wasn’t hitting on you, Ryan. I was setting you up to slap you down.” They both knew he was lying.

  “Okay, so why didn’t you tell everyone that when they found us that night, instead of lying, and letting people think that I….” Ryan still couldn’t say it.

  Ryan’s pain seemed to fuel something in Mike, something mean.

  “You are so stupid, Ryan. They wanted to believe it. All of them. It didn’t take much, not answering a question here, a little tear and a sigh there. They ate it up.” He had an evil smile on his face. But there was something else there too. The same thing that Ryan had seen at the bar last night. Self-loathing.

  Outside the room, unbeknownst to Ryan and Mike, the chief, Jake, and the cop who had taken Ryan’s statement stood watching and listening through the one-way mirror. Jake was angry but knew that he had to keep his cool and be there for Ryan.

  All of a sudden, there was a scuffle at the front desk, and a man was striding toward the chief, yelling at the top of his lungs.

  “What the fuck is going on, Ramsey? Where’s my son?”

  Jake could see the chief sigh before answering the man.

  “Mr. Harris, Mike requested a meeting with Mr. Andrews, and so we gave it to him. They’re in the interview room now.”

  Mr. Harris’s face was purple.

  “You have my boy locked in that room with that fucking pervert? What the hell is wrong with you? I’ll have your badge for this.”

  He was still screaming when he turned and reached for the door to open it.

  “Touch that door, Mr. Harris, and you and your son will be in adjoining cells.” The chief spoke with deadly authority, and the hand stopped.

  “Now, come over here and pay attention. You might learn something useful!”

  Mike’s father looked like he was going to argue, but the chief arched her eyebrow, and something about her look told him to behave. He walked over to the glass and looked in. His eyes widened dramatically when he saw the look on his son’s face. All the color left his face as he heard the awful words his youngest child had to say.

  “You’re a pathetic little joke, Ryan. You and your family and your money, you think it can get you out of anything. But it didn’t, did it? They listened to me, paid attention to what I said. They didn’t care if it was true or not, they just wanted to believe me. My father believed me.” His voice trailed off to almost a whisper, obviously not even seeing Ryan in that second.

  Ryan could see that Mike was losing control of his emotions. He looked at him and wanted to hate him, but he couldn’t. He felt nothing of the love he used to feel when he saw this boy. All he felt was pity. And it showed on his face.

  Mike started yelling, his eyes bulging, spit flying from his mouth.

  “Don’t you fucking pity me, you fucking faggot. I don’t need your pity. I have everything, you have nothing. No one believes in you, not one of them did. My dad believes me now, listens to me. Who cares if it was a fucking lie?”

  He was screaming with rage as Ryan stood up and headed for the door. Jake moved to meet him.

  “That’s right, Ryan, run away again. Run away and never come back!”

  Ryan turned one last time and spoke quietly.

  “I’m done running, Mike. I don’t have to anymore. Everyone knows the truth now, and I have what I need from you. Good-bye, Mike, I hope you find peace someday.” He turned and walked out the door into Jake’s arms.

  Chapter 26

  As Ryan pulled his old truck into the driveway of the ranch and came to a stop, he looked around and smiled. His life had changed so much in the ten months since he had first pulled in to this place.

  When he turned into here the first time, he had been lost and alone. He had felt like a burden on his family and had left them behind to make his own way, and until then, he hadn’t been doing a very good job of it.

  Jake had changed all that for him. In Jake he had found a soul mate, someone who gave him the strength to turn his life around. He’d found love and understanding, all in the form of a beautiful blue-eyed man who made his heart stutter every time he saw him.

  Jake was a man who was beautiful on the inside too. The events of last November proved that. Jake had given him back his family. His love had given Ryan the strength to go back to his hometown and face his fears. His name had been cleared, and he had walked out of that police station a stronger person.

  When they got back to the farm, the whole family was waiting to have the delayed Thanksgiving dinner they had missed. He had gotten more kisses and hugs from his mother and both grandmothers than he could ever remember getting, and his dad had beamed with happiness the whole day.

  They had arrived back in Galesburg a month later, having caught a ride on Ryan’s grandmother Evelyn’s plane so they could be there for Christmas. Sometimes having a rich relative had its perks. It was the happiest he could remember being in a long time.

  And the reason for that happiness rode up, looking almost exactly like he had the first time Ryan saw him. Ryan’s heart skipped a couple of beats at the picture of Jake, shirtless and barefoot, riding that gorgeous horse bareback. God damn, if he took a picture of that, he could make a fortune selling it, only he liked that it was all just for him.

  There was no hesitation in getting out of the truck this time. And he was pretty sure that his boyfriend knew exactly the kind of effect he was having on him.

  When those mesmerizing blue eyes peeked out from under that straw hat, he saw playfulness and heat, his favorite combination.

  “Hello, cowboy, what brings you my way?” That low drawl sent shivers down Ryan’s spine.

  “I was just looking for a new ride. Can you help a guy out?”

  Jake lifted the brim of his hat a little so Ryan could see his eyes better, before responding.

  “Well, it ain’t exactly new, but I’m willing to share.” He reached a hand down to Ryan and scooted back to give him room. He helped Ryan up in front of him, and Ryan reached down and pulled off his boots and socks and dropped them on the ground, looking over his shoulder to give Jake a sexy wink and a grin.

  “Comfy?” He could hear the smirk in Jake’s voice.

  “Not yet!” Ryan reached back with both hands and pulled Jake against him before grabbing the reins. “I’m driving.”

  Jake chuckled. “Fine with me, leaves my hands free for other things.” He spoke quietly into Ryan’s ear, the warm air, blowing over sensitive skin, causing him to shake a little.

  Both arms came up around Ryan’s waist, and he was pulled back against Jake’s chest in a hug that made him feel cherished and safe. They rode like that for a while, Jake humming in his ear, and he felt content. Then he realized that Jake’s fingers were on his shirt buttons.

  “Are you trying to get me naked on a horse, Jake Evans?” He felt warm lips on the back of his neck, kissing and sucking, leaving little marks down the top of his spine.

  “Just trying to even things out, babe.” Jake pulled Ryan’s shirt back off his arms and put it behind him, sitting on it a little so he didn’t lose it. Then his hands were everywhere, and Ryan reveled in the feeling of them, hot and seeking on his chest, caressing his stomach, tweaking his nipples, raking through his chest hair. Ryan was finding it hard to catch his breath, and he liked it.

  Soon those naughty hands were sliding down to the button of his jeans, and his cock was getting harder by the second. Jake very slowly lowered the zipper on Ryan’s jeans, deliberately rubbing over the hardness beneath it. Ryan couldn’t help the moan that escaped his lips.

  There was a hot m
outh on his neck, and it all felt so good, he wanted to return the favor. He reached one hand back to wrap it around Jake’s neck and pulled him in for a sloppy sideways kiss that curled both their toes.

  Jake’s hand reached into Ryan’s jeans and pulled his aching cock out of his boxers, giving it a few light, frustrating strokes. Ryan almost growled in frustration before getting an idea. He pushed back a little, shoving Jake further back on the horse, then swung one leg over so that he was sitting sideways and slid the other one over in front of Jake’s awed eyes so that he was facing Jake.

  The look on Jake’s face was priceless. Ryan reached out and pulled his boyfriend forward again before lifting his legs to wrap around Jake’s waist. The reins were wrapped loosely around the saddle horn, and Storm pretty much just kept wandering in the general direction they needed to go. He’d been on this trip before.

  Ryan’s hands came up and wrapped themselves around Jake’s neck, pulling him down for a breathless kiss that had his boyfriend’s heart almost pounding out of his chest.

  “Ryan.” His name was a whispered gasp. He looked up into those bottomless blue eyes as his hands smoothed down Jake’s hard chest, and the love he saw there almost overwhelmed the lust, and it made his heart stutter for a second. Jake pulled back a little, and Ryan leaned into him, placing tiny, heartwarming kisses on his neck and shoulders, following his collarbone, before kissing his way down to one of Jake’s nipples.

  When he pulled the hard little nub into his mouth, he bit down a little, loving Jake’s moan of pleasure-pain, before using his tongue to soothe away the pain.

  “Not fair, Ryan.” Jake was almost whining with pleasure.

  “Turned the tables on you, didn’t I?” He was nibbling on every bit of skin he could reach. “Hmm, you taste good.” He swirled his tongue over muscle, loving the feeling of Jake’s skin under his mouth. He could spend hours tasting his beautiful boyfriend, and in fact, he usually did.

  Ryan slid his hands down, smiling at the way those tight stomach muscles rippled with pleasure under his fingers. He undid Jake’s jeans and slid his hand in to pull out his weeping cock, moans coming from deep in Jake’s chest as Ryan stroked him. Finally, Jake couldn’t take it anymore, and he knocked away the hand touching him, ignoring Ryan’s whimper of protest. He put one hand on Ryan’s ass, pulling him as close as he could, then wrapped those long, agile fingers around both of them, stroking roughly, relishing the broken sounds coming from the blond who was practically in his lap.

  Jake looked up for a second and realized that they had come to their special clearing. He smiled as he remembered the first time he had brought Ryan here. It had changed his life. He still had one question he had never asked, though.

  “Ryan, baby, look at me.” Ryan looked up at him through dark eyelashes but was having trouble keeping his eyes open against the pleasure of Jake’s hand, so Jake stopped moving it, just kept holding on.

  “I need to ask you something.” Ryan smiled and nodded for him to continue, not even realizing that his hips were instinctively trying to move against Jake’s hand.

  “That first night, when you went for your bath, what were you thinking about? I mean, I know it was me. I heard you, but what… what was I doing?” He looked down at his hand, holding them together, and he kept rubbing his other hand up and down Ryan’s back, but he couldn’t look him in the eye while he waited for his answer.

  “Jake, darlin’, you are too cute. Here you are, giving me a hand job on a horse, and you can’t look me in the eye when you’re asking me about my fantasy?” He slid his hands back up around Jake’s neck, pulling him down a little, so he could whisper in his ear.

  “I was imagining you, the first moment I saw you, looking like this, in jeans and a hat, sexy and sweating, sliding off this horse and dropping to your knees and giving me the blowjob of my life.” He flicked his tongue over the shell of Jake’s ear, taking pride in the intake of breath it caused. But he gave a disappointed whine when Jake let go of him and slid off the horse.

  Jake reached his hands up, helping Ryan down to stand in front of him before curling his hand around the back of Ryan’s neck and pulling him in for a soul-searing kiss. When he came up for air, he confessed to Ryan.

  “After I heard you, I went upstairs and jerked off, and we must have been sharing a mind, because I was imagining sucking you off, you looking down at me with those chocolate eyes of yours.”

  Ryan smiled at the thought, and before he could say anything, Jake dropped to his knees, taking Ryan into his mouth in one breath, and it was like everything Ryan had imagined that night.

  Jake seemed to have a talent for this, right from the first time he did it. He swallowed Ryan down, using both hands on his ass to control his movements, pulling him further into his mouth. Jake loved everything about this. How Ryan felt on his tongue, the taste of him, the delicious sounds he made, and just like in his dream, he loved it when Ryan twisted his fingers in his hair and pulled, just a little. He had grown his hair out a little longer, for that reason. It gave Ryan something to hold on to.

  “Jake?” Jake opened his eyes and looked up at that rough voice, the one that said that Ryan was getting close. “Touch yourself, baby. I want to see.”

  Jake’s hand let go of Ryan’s hip, so he could reach down and give himself a little relief. He stroked quickly, keeping in time with the movements of his mouth on Ryan. He pulled off for a moment and slicked a finger into his mouth before inhaling him again. Ryan’s whimpers and cries were overwhelming his senses. The smell of Ryan and sex and the woods around them was his favorite smell now, like Ryan was something untamed that needed to be taken in the wild.

  He slipped his wet finger around and slid it into Ryan’s ass, trying to hold Ryan still with that same hand. He prepared himself for the other man’s reaction by pulling back just a little. He used a little extra suction, and slid his finger in further at the same time, finding Ryan’s prostate with practiced ease. He felt Ryan tense, and he came with a shout down Jake’s throat, and Jake swallowed it all, forgetting himself and wrapping both arms around Ryan to keep him from falling.

  He slid up Ryan’s body, never letting go, and just held him while he came down from his orgasm. When Ryan could speak again, he clutched Jake to him tightly, raining kisses on his face and chanting Jake’s name over and over again.

  They stood there for a while, just holding each other, kissing lazily, until Ryan realized that Jake was still hard.

  He grinned devilishly. “Need some help with that?” He was about to return the favor when Jake stopped him.

  “Hold on.” Jake walked over to what looked like a box hidden under a bush and grabbed the blanket he had stashed there, secretly wanting to surprise Ryan.

  He spread it out on the ground before walking back to Ryan and removing the rest of his clothes. “Ryan, it’s a sin that you have to wear clothes, sweetheart. You are too beautiful to be covered up.” Ryan dropped his chin and blushed, like he always did when Jake complimented him like that. Then he raised his head and smirked a little.

  “Could be dangerous doing farm chores naked, Jake. And besides, we would go through a hell of a lot of sun block. And if I gotta be naked, so do you.”

  He dropped down, pulling off Jake’s jeans and boxers. Soon they were standing naked together, each one thinking the other was the most amazing sight he had ever seen.

  Jake took Ryan’s hand and led him to the blanket, stopping to grab his jeans, then gently lowering him to the ground before laying himself on top of him. The brush of his cock against Ryan almost had him coming right there, but that wasn’t how he wanted to do it. His eyes locked with Ryan’s, and he reached for the jeans beside him again, sliding a small bottle of lube out of his pocket. They had both been tested, twice, three months apart, and had done away with condoms when they both were deemed clean. He put the bottle in Ryan’s hand.

  “Make love to me, Ryan.” He rolled them over so that Ryan was on top and opened his legs to let Ryan
rest between them.

  Ryan leaned down and licked his way into that sinful mouth, softly at first, until his feelings overwhelmed him, and he was kissing Jake so hard that he scraped his lip on sharp teeth, and blood beaded on it.

  Jake held Ryan’s head still as he licked and soothed the spot before kissing his way across his jaw and down his neck. Things slowed a little then, the urgency gone, feelings of love and comfort and home overriding the now, now, now of the moment. Jake’s hands were sliding off Ryan’s face and down and around his shoulders, long arms wrapping around and strong but gentle fingers tracing nonsense patterns on tanned skin, relaxing tense muscles.

  Ryan was getting hard again, just from the feeling of Jake against him, and he knew that his boyfriend could do this to him every time.

  He kissed his way down Jake’s body, leaving little red marks with his teeth, then soothing them with his tongue, trying with every touch to let Jake know how much he was loved. He nuzzled into the hollow of his hipbone, breathing in the scent of Jake’s arousal and smiling, because it was just for him. When his lips finally found Jake’s length, the broken moan made his heart clench, like always, so happy that he could made his man feel so good.

  Jake’s hands found his hair, and Ryan looked up into stormy blue eyes as he slid his mouth down, one hand on Jake’s hip, keeping him from bucking up into Ryan’s mouth while the other traced over a strong thigh, then slid below, one finger rubbing over his entrance, causing it to pulse and then relax.

  Urgent hands were pulling at him, wanting him to stop, and Ryan whined in protest.

  “Ryan, stop, please.” He pulled a little harder on Ryan’s hair. “Don’t wanna come like this, want you in me.” Jake’s voice was hoarse with the effort of holding back. Ryan reluctantly pulled off, lunging up to claim Jake’s lips again before pulling back and grabbing the bottle of lube he had dropped on the blanket.

  He drizzled some on his fingers and slid them once over Jake’s cock before reaching down to gently slide one into him, finding his prostate almost immediately. He loved to do this sometimes. Sit back and watch Jake’s face as he gently prepared him, watching as he fell apart and waited for Ryan to put him back together again.