Rough Ride

by Green, A. S.

  This doesn’t bother me at all. I’m fucking thrilled to be the one to explore anything with Luke. “Plug me.”

  “Right.”

  He opens a drawer and pulls out something that’s far from the size of him, but still intimidating. I’m suddenly nervous, but I trust him.

  He flips the cap off something with his other hand and squirts some of its contents on the tapered tip. “I really want you to like this. Are you ready?”

  I nod and press my forehead into the bed as he touches the lubed plug to my puckered hole. He slowly inserts it, twisting as he goes. When I stretch over the bulb, closing around the narrower base, Luke clicks something and a rumbling vibration runs straight up my spine.

  “Holy shit!”

  “Is that good? Do you like it?” He gives the plug another click and the vibrations ratchet up a notch. It’s like lightning.

  “Hell, yes.”

  “Good, baby. Now hold still. This is probably going to feel like a lot, but I’m coming back in.” His hands grip my hips as he pulls me back to him. I arch my back to give him a better angle. He gives the plug a twist, and I groan.

  “Get me there, Luke. And I swear to God... Stop short, and I’ll rip you apart.”

  “As much as I’d probably enjoy that... Trust me. I couldn’t stop even if I tried. I wish you could see what you look like. Plugged. Pussy dripping. So beautiful.”

  Luke’s hands tighten at my hips as he slowly, agonizingly, slides his giant cock back into my wet channel.

  I cry out in ecstasy. He was right. Between his thick shaft and the vibrating plug, I am as full as I can imagine ever being.

  Luke groans from somewhere deep inside, so I can tell he likes it too. “You were already tight but now... Oh, shit. Oh, fuck.”

  He moves in me, setting up a rhythm. Our bodies slap together, slick with sweat, and lube, and my natural arousal. I’m panting and mewling, while he gasps, and continues muttering a litany of interchanging curses and prayers.

  This goes on forever until my walls contract around him, I draw him in deeper, sucking him in, until I swear I can feel him in the back of my throat. My body hovers there, at that second of indecision, before everything draws up tight and—

  “FUUUUUUCK!” we both cry out together.

  I plummet over the edge, pulsing around his cock, my walls rippling, milking his orgasm out of him until we both collapse into an exhausted, boneless heap.

  I feel him for hours.

  Chapter Sixteen

  Tess

  For the next two weeks, Luke and I continue to run the horse program together. We are careful not to stare at each other too long in public, or to get any closer to each other than a few feet. That is, except for those teasing brushes of fingers as we pass each other in the dining hall, or when we hand each other a bridle.

  But once we’re alone, it’s nothing but a frantic free-for-all of pawing, pleading, try this, do this, come for me now.

  I shrug when Kelly and Beth ask me how I can handle working so close to someone who’s “so unbelievably smokin’,” but other than that, none of the other CITs say anything to suggest they’re on to the fact that I often disappear after dinner, or that I’m up with the sun, coming back sweaty because I really, really love those early morning runs.

  Tonight, I’m bummed. There will be no late-night escape to Luke’s trailer because it’s pouring rain. I’m not afraid of getting wet; I’m not made of sugar. It’s just that, if caught, it would be hard to explain the need for a shower in the middle of a lightning storm.

  My body is restless without him, and I watch the windows of my cabin light up with each flash, counting the seconds until I hear the boom so I can judge the distance of the center of the storm. It’s moving fast, practically right on top of us.

  Everyone else in my cabin is sleeping through the noise. That is, until there’s a loud boom from the direction of the stables and Beth yelps in her sleep.

  “What was that?” I whisper, but she doesn’t answer. She’s sleeping again.

  There’s another loud boom that pulls me out of bed. It’s not thunder. It sounds more like a gun shot, and it’s close. Moving on the balls of my feet, I creep across the cabin floor to the windows that face the stables. There’s a light at the front and back entrances, but I don’t see anything amiss.

  That’s when there’s another loud boom, a crash, and a wild shriek. The horses. The storm must have them spooked.

  As I watch, there’s an explosion of sound. Bang-Bang-BANG! The back door of the stable flies open and a horse, black as night, but with a bright white blaze down her nose, races out of the barn, headed for the woods.

  Juliet!

  I grab my yellow rain coat off the peg by the door and pull it on over my nightie. I shove my bare feet into sneakers then run out into the rain, headed for the stable. Inside, the horses are all awake, stomping, and whinnying nervously. Juliet’s stall door is hanging askew from one caster, the other having jumped the track. The back door to the stable is broken and splintered, swinging wildly in the wind. Beyond it, the sky shatters like broken glass.

  I’d call for Luke, but I don’t have a phone and his trailer is on the opposite end of camp. He has no idea his beloved horse is out there and on the loose.

  I grab a halter from the hook on Juliet’s door and run out into the rain, shielding my eyes from the drops that seem to be pelting me from all directions, even up from the ground.

  “Juliet!” I call. “Juliet!”

  I stumble forward, staggering into trees and falling over objects that are too dark to see. I’ve got to be twenty-five yards into the woods, maybe more, when I hit a clearing and the sky lights up.

  I spot the black horse, quivering under a pine tree, one wild eye turned toward me, showing a white ring of terror around the iris.

  I hold out my hand as my body shakes from the cold and my teeth chatter together. My raincoat has come unsnapped and I’m soaked through. “Easy, g-g-g-g-girl. Easy. C-c-come to me.”

  Juliet tosses her head and rears up on her hind legs. To be honest, she scares the shit out of me, but I don’t see any other way. I can’t leave her alone out here. I take a step closer. “C-come here, g-girl. It’s all right.”

  She shakes her head and paws at the wet ground.

  “I’ll get you back into a dry barn. W-wouldn’t you like that?” By now I am right up next to her. She hasn’t shown any signs of bolting, but she’s still nervous and making anxious, high-pitched whinnies.

  I reach up and ease her nose through the halter. When she jerks her head down, I move quickly and pull the crownpiece over her ears. Before she can undo my work, I get the throatlatch fastened then take a deep breath. Now all I’ve got to do is grab hold and convince her to follow me home. I should have grabbed a lead line, too.

  Fortunately the rain is letting up. I take a step forward, clucking my tongue to coax her out from under the tree.

  That’s when a beam of light slashes across Juliet’s flank and a voice I know so well says, “Holy fucking shit.”

  My head jerks up to find Luke, shirtless and in soaking wet Levi’s, standing between two trees with a flashlight in his hand.

  “What are you doing, Tess?” The rain has tapered off some, enough for me to hear him without his yelling and waking the whole camp.

  It seems obvious to me what I’m doing. “Juliet was afraid of the storm. She broke out. I came after her.”

  Luke crosses the clearing, coming to me in a rush. “In the dark? You could have gotten hurt.”

  “So could she.” I have a firm hold of Juliet’s halter, but Luke replaces my hand with his. Juliet seems to calm at his presence.

  “You are amazing,” he says. “Could you get any more amazing?”

  Before I can answer, his mouth crashes down on mine. His free arm wraps around my waist, and
he lifts me up. I press myself against Luke’s bare chest and tighten my legs around his waist so I don’t slip and my mouth can stay even with his.

  My soaked nightie is so thin I might as well be naked, but I’m not cold anymore. The rain tapers off to a trickle.

  “Luke,” I say between gasps and kisses. “Luke.”

  “God, you’re so sexy. So perfect. I need to be inside you.”

  “I want that, too, Luke. But we need to get Juliet back to the barn.”

  “Right,” he says, regaining his composure. “Right.”

  He plants one more kiss on my lips, letting his tongue slip in. This time it’s sweet. It’s beautiful. It’s grateful. And just as meaningful as everything else we’ve shared in the last few weeks.

  It’s so intense, that the clearing suddenly explodes in a spectacular light show, as if nature is reacting to everything that Luke and I feel for each other.

  Except I know that’s not right. That’s not reality. That’s only my imagination.

  “Luke!” yells another voice. Male. Loud. Juliet jerks her head.

  Luke and I both gasp against each other’s mouths. We turn to find the Marsdens, Max, and one of the guy CITs standing in the clearing, each with a flashlight trained on us. Two of them are holding halters and lead lines.

  “What is the meaning of this?” Mrs. Marsden asks as Luke slowly slides my wet body down the length of his, lowering my feet to the ground.

  Chapter Seventeen

  Luke

  By the next morning, I’m packed before the campers wake. I’ve hitched my trailer to my truck before they’ve finished their breakfasts. Last night I begged the Marsdens not to punish Tess. This was all my fault. She should be allowed to stay.

  They’ve agreed. But I’m done.

  I’m not to come back. Forget about next summer.

  As I pull my travel trailer out from behind the lodge around the north side of the loop, I can hear hammering in the stable as Mr. Marsden fixes Juliet’s stall door.

  I slow down as I pull past cabin six. I’m not allowed to stop. I’m not allowed to say goodbye. This all went down so fast I don’t even have Tess’s number.

  Tess is sitting on the porch steps. She’s shivering in a blanket, though the air is warm and humid from last night’s storm. Tears streak down her cheeks.

  Mrs. Marsden is standing beside Tess on the steps. The woman’s normally soft face looks chiseled from stone. Her hand presses down on Tess’s shoulder, restraining her, because my beautiful green-eyed girl looks ready to bolt.

  Tess

  Luke is really leaving. His handsome face turns toward me as he slowly drives past. I watch him through his passenger window, memorizing every nuance of his features before he’s gone, and gone forever.

  Our eyes lock, and a muscle jumps in his jaw. I want to run to him. To jump in his truck and leave right along with him, but Mrs. Marsden tightens her grip and holds me to the step.

  Even though I’ve apologized to her for breaking the rules, I won’t be getting rehired as a counselor next summer, and I can forget about a professional reference from Camp Winnepauk. It makes me wonder why I bother to stay.

  Luke’s brake lights flare when he comes to the end of the loop. There’s a moment where I think he’s going to turn around, but then his signal light blinks, and he turns onto the main road, quickly disappearing behind a row of trees.

  I jump to my feet, startling Mrs. Marsden, and run to the stables so I can imagine that Luke is still close to me. Mr. Marsden exits the paddock as I arrive. He’s carrying a toolbox. His hard look of disapproval taints even this special place.

  * * *

  June dissolves into July. July slogs on into August.

  I now run the horse program because, in some tragic twist of fate, I have more experience than anyone else here. Luke would laugh if he saw me. Twice a kid has landed on his ass because I didn’t get the saddle’s girth cinched tight enough. I don’t feel even remotely bad. They were older kids. They can tighten their own damn saddles.

  August blazes in like hell, which is where I’ve been living for weeks. When we finally board the buses for home, I don’t even look back.

  It’s a three-hour drive to Minneapolis. I sit in the front seat behind the driver, feeling antisocial. Everyone behind me is singing “Ninety-nine Bottles of Beer on the Wall” and “I’m Henry the Eighth I Am” and any number of other irritating camp songs they’ve learned over the summer.

  I brace my head on my fist and lean against the window. About the time we hit the city limit, I catch a flash of light in the bus driver’s large sideview mirror. I shield my eyes and raise my head to get a better look.

  Whatever’s following us is pulling something large and silver. Oh, shit. I turn and look behind me. Then I whip around and get on my feet so I can peer over the driver’s shoulder and into the mirror. It can’t be. But it is.

  Luke.

  When we stop at the red light just before the Park-n-Ride, Luke’s truck pulls up along the right side of the bus. I rush to the seat across the aisle and try to get his attention. I can see him so clearly as he looks up at the bus, but these damn tinted windows... He can’t see me.

  “Is that...” Beth asks. “Is that Luke?” A few of the other CITs are paying attention now. My scandal may have been guarded from the younger campers, but all the CITs have come to know my sins.

  When the light turns green, Luke pulls ahead. I lose sight of him, and I start to panic that maybe he wasn’t actually following us and it was some weird coincidence. But then the bus stops. Parks. And my eyes spot the long silver trailer parked not far away. Leaning against the truck is my tall, blond cowboy.

  I grab my duffel and sleeping bag off the overhead rack and tell the bus driver to let me off. I don’t remember taking the steps. I don’t remember crossing the fifty feet that separates us. I run like my life depends on it and drop everything at Luke’s feet before launching myself into his strong arms.

  “Tess,” he says, saying my name on an exhale.

  “Luke! What are you doing here?”

  He laughs and kisses my face, my collarbone, my shoulder. “You thought I’d give up that easy?”

  “But I ruined what was important to you,” I say, kissing him back. “You lost the horses because of me. I thought I’d never see you again.”

  “No, you saved Juliet, and you did it for me. And besides that... Tess, you knew.”

  “Knew what?” My eyes are flooded with tears that spill onto my cheeks; Luke’s eyes are shiny, too.

  “Knew how I could never get enough of you. Strong, brave, selfless, amazing you. We had a rough ride, but you’re mine. Today. Tomorrow. For as long as you’ll have me.”

  “Yours,” I say, confirming it. “And you’re mine.”

  “Yes, Tess. My beautiful green-eyed girl. I’m yours. Always.”

  Epilogue

  Two Months Later

  Tess

  My head is turned toward the window, eyes glued to the parking lot below. Now that the leaves have started to fall, my view is less obscured. It only serves to increase my anticipation.

  “That’ll be it for the day,” says Professor Xiong, my early childhood development instructor. Then she taps her acrylic nails on the board, calling everyone’s attention to the words she’s written there: Test Next Tuesday.

  Most everyone groans as they pack their things. I glance back toward the lot. Right on time, Luke’s pickup truck pulls in and parks.

  “There’s your man,” Leslie says as she slips her backpack over her shoulder. She gives a little sigh when Luke gets out of the truck and leans against the door. He always gets out to wait for me. He says he likes to have both arms free, and no steering wheel getting in his way.

  I glance over my shoulder at Leslie, then smile. “Yep. There he is.”

 
“Some girls have all the luck.”

  Do I ever.

  Luke found an apprenticeship with a horse trainer in the next town over. Better yet, his new boss agreed to let him park his trailer on the property. This means I spend more nights there than at the sorority house. Both of us are happy.

  When I get outside, Luke’s face breaks into the warm smile that always melts my heart. “How was class, Tess?”

  I sigh and let my backpack slip off my shoulder. It hits the ground with a thud. “Long.”

  He raises one eyebrow. “Aren’t you liking it anymore? Switch majors if you’re not.”

  I shake my head. “That’s not it.”

  Slowly, my meaning dawns on him, and the concern leaves his face. “Yeah, babe. It was a long afternoon for me, too.”

  He lifts me off the ground and kisses me slow and sweet. Just like always, my head spins and my joints turn to rubber. I should be used to this. I hope I never get used to this.

  When he sets me on my feet, he makes sure my legs are steady before resting his chin on top of my head. “I think some of your friends are watching. We should get out of here before we give them too much of a show.”

  “Good thinking,” I say, still catching my breath. “Where should we go?”

  “Wherever you want,” he says. “You know it, Tess. Whatever, whenever, wherever. I’m going to be the one to take you there.”

  This makes me laugh because no truer words were ever spoken. “Home, then, Cowboy. Take me home.”

  He understands that I mean the trailer, and his eyes widen with surprise. “You’ve never called it that before.”

  “Shouldn’t I? Is that too weird?”

  “Not at all.” He strokes his hands over my hair, pulling it off my face. “I don’t think I’ve ever heard anything so sweet.”

  “No?” I get a sudden rush of recklessness. “I’ve got more where that came from.”

  The corners of his mouth tip up. “Oh, yeah? What’s that?”

  Nerves flutter through my stomach. What I want to say seems simultaneously too big and yet too small to hold everything I feel. “Just that I love you.”