Hannah's Gold

by Hannah's Gold (lit)

  She gave a start. Luke spoke softly to her. His breath tickled her ear.

  “I’m sorry. You’ve used me all up for the time being. If you want fucking again, now, you’ll have to open your legs for Jed.”

  Resting his bare butt against the table top, he pulled her back onto his upper thighs and slid his hands onto the insides of hers. He gently widened her legs, levering them apart while Jed unfastened his pants. Her eyes fixed on his, it was clear his earlier carryings-on with the saloon girls hadn’t dampened his sexual ardor any. Hannah marveled at his obvious stamina, and her sheer good fortune to have these two men pleasuring her in this outrageous way. His rampant cock sprung from its lair and rammed inside her. Thrusting roughly while gripping her outer thighs, their combined weight, now, fell against Luke’s hard frame.

  Hannah’s slick, sweaty skin slid erotically against Luke’s. He too gave a little groan as he kneaded and stroked her bare breasts in the same way, and with the same verve, Jed had pleasured them only minutes earlier. They grunted and rocked in unison.

  The gentleness of Hannah’s earlier coupling with Luke faded into a frantic, primeval tempo of intense fervor, now dominated by his younger brother. The raw sexuality of his thrusts brought her to the trembling brink once more. Sharp, stabbing waves of ecstasy made her gasp and cry out yet again as her cunt contracted and squeezed around his thick cock. At last, with a low groan and a succession of satisfied grunts, Jed too released his seed into her bucking body to join that of his brother’s still lubricating her quivering passage.

  Hannah wrapped her legs around his waist, curling the toes of one foot around the ankle of the other. She wasn’t going to let him go—not yet. She needed to keep him inside her for as long as possible. She still cared about Jacob but he’d not stuck around long enough to treat her to enough of this. How could he have been so cruel as to awaken such basic needs, only to abandon her so quickly? Deep down, she knew he’d had no choice, that she herself had urged him on his quest, but it did little to relieve her pain at his long absence. With so little time left, she knew she clutched at straws to think he would be coming back.

  As Jed fell against her, he trapped Luke’s hands against her naked breasts. Exhaustion overwhelmed her and she lay unmoving between the two men, overcome by the intensity of such unashamed immorality. The sweat sat shiny on her skin. It made her slip sensuously against Luke’s naked flesh while, at the same time, adhered the front of Jed’s shirt to her. Tendrils of hair stuck to her face and she had to spit tiny strands from her mouth. She felt so small, so helpless between the two men, yet at the same time so powerful. It was a shame it wouldn’t last.

  She shuddered.

  Only a few more days, then McCabe would call in his debt, and he would be the one doing these things to her.

  But he wouldn’t be treating her the same way.

  She knew that for sure.

  And, once he’d had his fun with her, he’d throw her to his dogs, and they certainly wouldn’t care how they treated her.

  Chapter Ten

  Hannah hid in a corner of her bedroom. She crouched over a bowl of water that she’d placed on the floor. She looked like an Indian squaw, crouched by a fire.

  She’d scooped the water from the rain barrel outside, and her hands and fingers busily douched and washed away the creamy issues of the two strangers who’d just pleasured her in such an outrageous way.

  However, pleasure had morphed into dismay as full realization of what she’d just done hit her hard. She could hear her mother’s parting words as she’d stepped aboard the train, alone, to travel here and meet up with her brother.

  “Mind my words, girl,” she’d said grimly. “Never let a man get his hands beneath your skirt unless you want a baby. We’ve had enough shame brought upon this family without you causing us any more disgrace.”

  “When I have a baby, it will be with a husband to help me,” Hannah had replied coolly, although the thought of husbands and babies were the furthest thoughts from her mind. After all, that was one of the reasons she decided to make her escape.

  “A husband? To help?” her mother scoffed. “When you have a husband and the babies start to come, that’s when you’ll wish you’d stayed with your mother and sisters. All your husband will do is take his pleasure and give you a child every year. You’ll find it hard and lonely doing all the work on your own.”

  Her mother’s face was dour, set in stone. It conveyed her disappointment that her head-strong daughter had refused to marry Matthew Holden, the son of a well-off property owner. His entry into the family would certainly have eased their current financial burden and helped to ease the pain and humiliation of what had recently befallen them all. But she hadn’t. She’d decided, instead, to chase after her equally head-strong brother who’d headed out West in search of freedom and adventure, abandoning the Turner women to live with the scandal following their father’s untimely and unexpected death.

  A bank owner, Cornelius Turner had lost everyone’s money in a series of bad investments, and, rather than face the shame of prosecution in the law courts, he’d chosen to put a gun to his head, thinking he’d take the gentleman’s way out. Except, of course, he’d been no gentleman. He’d abandoned his wife and family to face the uproar that followed, alone.

  Left penniless, Hannah’s mother had to resort to taking in boarders, while Hannah and her four younger sisters sought work as seamstresses. Their only brother, William, had headed out West to escape the scandal and to start over, perhaps make his fortune looking for gold out in California. He promised that, when he succeeded, he would return home, and his mother and sisters would no longer have to work. They would all return to their rightful place in society, and he would take care of them all. But in the meantime, the women were left with no man to support them.

  William took off several months before Hannah left. In the beginning, they received some letters, telling his family of his travels. Hannah, ever the imaginative one, dreamed of joining him and travelling the rest of the way out West with him. Sewing with a group of whining sisters didn’t appeal to her tomboyish nature. She felt sure she could help her brother pan for gold. Paddling barefoot in flowing waters, her skirt tucked above her knees, created a tempting venture in her mind. She didn’t even think about what it would be like when the rains came, or that there might be days spent finding nothing at all. All she could see was a fairytale ending to her family’s plight.

  Even better, it would get her away from Matthew’s perpetual fawning and her mother’s insistent coaxing to marry him. When William’s letters dried up, she decided she would go to find him.

  She came here first. It was the last place from which he’d written. But by the time she arrived, he’d already moved on. However, Jacob and his father were waiting for her. William had worked for them for a while, and, before he left, he’d told them that if his little sister showed up, they should keep her with them until he returned. They kept their word and, in return for food and lodging, Hannah became their housekeeper, concentrating on the household chores.

  She cooked, washed, and grew vegetables while the men tended the cattle and horses. However, having ridden back home, Hannah had a way with the horses, too, always preferring more physical activities than her sisters, who liked to play the piano and flirt with young men. So, more and more, she found herself helping out in the corral with Jacob and the ranch hands.

  It wasn’t that she hadn’t done her share of flirting. Hannah had always had her share of admirers. But with her strong-minded, impetuous ways, she was always too quick with a put-down.

  “Not lady-like at all,” her mother had once complained as more and more young men fell by the wayside.

  In the end, only Matthew persevered with her. Even after the scandal that rocked both their families, he remained a constant visitor, much to the consternation of his mother. Rumors ran rife that they would soon marry. However, Hannah didn’t love him and she wasn’t prepared to produce a brood of children
for a man she didn’t care enough about, even if it would have meant financial security for her mother and sisters, as well as herself.

  So, having finally made her escape, she found she loved the life here more.

  Certainly, life was hard, but the men soon appreciated her quick tongue and practical skills. She proved very quickly that she wasn’t a wet-behind-the-ears greenhorn from back East, afraid of hard work and getting her hands dirty. For that, they admired her.

  However, before she left to catch the train, her mother, finally resigned to her daughter’s departure, at least, tried to give her the benefit of her womanly experience. She told her of ways that women could try to reduce the number of babies they had, if they couldn’t persuade their husbands to “treat them with respect.”

  Hannah hadn’t really been sure what she’d meant by that until Jacob made love to her. Determined not to put a child in her belly, he withdrew from her just before he came. He’d fallen upon her, panting and crying out her name in pain and anguish, as he spurted his warm seed over her belly. For a moment, Hannah was frightened that he’d hurt himself in some way. After a few minutes, he’d smiled tenderly at her innocence and told her that was what men did when they respected women. There would be time enough for babies when the ranch became his once again.

  Well, the two cowboys hadn’t done what Jacob had done, so now, following her mother’s instructions, she cleaned high into her vagina, washing out any semen the two men had left behind. She knew that it might not work but she would try her best.

  Her cheeks still burned fiercely but not through shame. She knew she ought to feel shame but she’d loved every moment of the intimacy she shared with the two men. Her heart still pounded. Its rapid beat hammered against her ribcage while her head filled with stars, spinning in the aftermath of the intense emotion to which she’d succumbed. Until Jacob, she’d never realized she was a woman of such passion, driven by a powerful, burning hunger. For twelve long months, she’d kept it in check but she’d been swept along by an incredible desire, drawn to the power and inner strength that the two brothers had shown her by championing her against the evil Ethan McCabe.

  Both men had serviced her well, but it was Luke who still filled her thoughts as she douched. Pictures of his delicious, naked body performing his toilette in the bath, made her skin tingle afresh at the memory of his bare flesh touching hers. Much as she’d enjoyed Jed’s final, rough love-making, Luke’s gentle handling of her body really gave her goose bumps. He made her feel so good.

  He might be a total stranger, soon to disappear as quickly as he’d appeared, but, at least she’d been given the opportunity to feel the joy of gentle handling, and to be cared for again, if only for a short while.

  As the deadline drew closer, she’d wanted to run away so many times. Because of her hot-headed promises and dogged resolve to show everyone in town that someone could, and would, stand up to Ethan McCabe, she’d made a vow. However, because of that vow, in less than four days time, she’d have to surrender herself to him. Then, he’d put her to work in his whorehouse, to become a harlot for anyone to procure.

  Chapter Eleven

  Luke watched as Hannah ladled stew into the dishes. Steam curled and danced toward the ceiling. It brought with it a delicious, mouth-watering aroma. Both brothers had drooled each time she stirred the pot. It was months since either had eaten decent, home-cooked food, and women usually made a good job of cooking, especially when they had someone to cook for. The cook, on the journey across the prairies, had spent most of his days gazing at the bottom of a whiskey bottle instead of serving up proper grub. For most of the ride, the victuals were tough and hard.

  However, since emerging from her bedroom, Hannah had remained quiet. Luke had only returned there briefly to retrieve the clothes she’d laid out for him. Quickly covering herself after their coupling, she’d disappeared outside for a moment. She’d returned carrying a bowl of water. He knew exactly what it was for. He cursed himself for not being more refrained. He wasn’t in the habit of spilling his seed into women who didn’t want it—even if his brother might be. He’d learned a long time ago there were ways of making sure he didn’t leave an unwanted child in their bellies.

  When she’d shut herself in the bedroom, it bothered him all the more. They didn’t usually take advantage of lonely, isolated women, but suddenly it felt as though that was exactly what they’d done. He’d shot a swift, concerned glance at Jed, who returned his gaze with a recalcitrant one of his own.

  “What?” Jed demanded. He seemed totally unfazed by all that had happened.

  Luke knew he was too principled for his own good. Sometimes he wished he was more like his little brother and not given over to guilt the way he was.

  “Maybe we shouldn’t have,” he began.

  “Don’t,” Jed warned. “You didn’t see what I saw when I stepped through the door. She was so busy pleasuring herself over your stark naked body, she never even heard me come in. We gave her what she wanted, that’s all. You heard the pretty mewling she made.” He rolled his eyes skyward and imitated her tiny cries of rapture. He gave a wicked, lopsided grin as he met his brother’s gaze. “And don’t try to tell me she didn’t enjoy it, too. You worry too much.”

  Luke was glad Hannah was out of ear shot. He inhaled deeply, puffing out his cheeks and letting out a long, slow, thoughtful breath. Jed was right. That was his trouble. He did worry, not like his little brother, whose womanizing ways had got him into trouble on more than one occasion. After all, that was part of why they were now here instead of helping their father rebuild his business after the dreadful financial crash that had all but ruined them. He gave his head a little shake and shot Jed a look of disdain at his disrespectful mimicry. At least it made him hold up his hands in defeat.

  “Okay, okay,” he relented. “I won’t touch her again,” then added with a grin, “unless she wants me to.” Pausing for a moment, he shot his brother a knowing look. “Or maybe, you’re thinking that you want to keep her all to yourself.”

  “Don’t talk ridiculous. She may already be spoken for.”

  “To a man evident by his absence,” Jed replied scathingly. “What kind of bastard abandons a woman and allows an evil fuck to grope and treat her like that in public? Even I’ve got better standards than that. I’d never take an unwilling woman into my bed. They deserve more respect than that”.

  The same thought still nagged Luke. What was it that he’d overheard Hannah saying? Something about a deal? What deal? And where did she fit into it? He wrestled with these thoughts until he finally decided it was none of his business. Consequently, when Hannah returned from her ablutions and dished up supper, he focused on the meal instead.

  “This tastes mighty good,” he praised, blowing short bursts of breath onto the hot food to help cool it. The first forkful had burned his tongue. Both Jed and Hannah had chuckled at his predicament.

  As Hannah smiled her thanks at his kind words, her clear blue eyes sparkled. They made Luke’s heart give a little lurch. He thought about how lovely she looked, with her cheeks, sitting like two rosy apples atop the upturned corners of her pretty, ruby-red lips. Especially, as earlier, when she’d emerged fully clothed from the bedroom, all his previous misgivings had come rushing back.

  With her mouth set in a grim line, she’d buttoned her blouse all the way up to her neck and fastened it with a brooch. It was as if to ward off any further ideas to touch her, especially in all those places she’d enjoyed being touched just a short time before. Luke now feared she regretted her impromptu actions.

  But instead of warding off his gaze, the brooch only succeeded in drawing his eyes to the base of her creamy throat and long slender neck that was now emphasized all the more by the way she’d tied her hair back into a heavy ponytail. It swung enticingly from side to side every time she moved her head and revealed a neck that invited his kisses. He wanted to nibble and lick all the way up to her ears and hairline, before changing direction and trai
ling a path down to her slender shoulders and luscious breasts. A jolt kicked him low in his belly. She also kept sneaking crafty looks in his direction when she didn’t think he was looking, and he thought they were the most beautiful eyes upon which he’d ever had the good fortune to gaze.

  When he’d started masturbating in the bath, he believed just her pretty face and delightful curves were the object of his fantasies, as well as the lack of female company for the past few months. Now, he wasn’t so sure.

  They’d conversed so easily on the ride back. He’d homed in on all her little mannerisms, noticing the way she tossed her hair and the agreeable way she had of laughing at his stories of the cattle drive through such inhospitable country. Even before he dismounted from his horse he knew he was smitten. Each time she smiled, a cute little dimple played at the corner of her mouth.

  She intrigued him, this woman alone, with the strength to stand up to a man like McCabe, and capable of running a ranch when all hands had obviously abandoned her to her inevitable fate. For the umpteenth time, he wondered about the deal she had made with him.

  And what kind of man had let her make it?

  He had to ask.

  “So, what kind of man leaves a woman to fend for herself in a God-forsaken place like this with a devil like McCabe thinking he runs the town?” Hannah’s smile faded and Luke knew he’d asked the wrong thing.

  “He doesn’t think. He does,” she corrected grimly. Her tone of voice told Luke he had to tread warily. She obviously didn’t take kindly to any criticism aimed at Jacob. “Ethan McCabe owns the town and every property and business in it. Except for this place.”

  Luke and Jed exchanged glances but it was Jed who spoke first as he juggled a piece of hot dumpling in his mouth.

  “That why your man ran out on you?”