Jay laughed. “I like the sound of that. Coming home to dinner on the table and you in my bed. Yeah, I could do that.”
“Or me on the table and dinner in bed?”
“That too.” Jay rolled over, searching Cameron’s eyes. “You’re sure?”
“I’m sure.”
They kissed and as he tasted Jay’s passion and love, Cameron knew that his heart had always been safe here in Echo Cove.
THE END
Author bio: Scarlet likes cats and hats and firmly believes that the only thing better than one attractive man is two attractive men.
You can write to her at: [email protected]
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Penny Brandon – FINDING JACK (Cowboys/Mild BDSM)
Selected by Penny Brandon
Dear Author,
I have tried every game and trick that I can think of. All I want is to have the big boss man take one look in my direction. I have been in love with him since the first day I stepped foot on this ranch two years ago.
Can someone out there give this cocky cowboy the HEA and punishment that he is looking for.
[PHOTO: Standing in the stirrups of a western saddle on a bay horse, silhouetted against a blue sky, is a totally naked cowboy. He's young, slim, with curly brown hair and a tattoo on one bicep. The distinct tan lines around his white ass suggest he swims in a Speedo. He holds a white stetson strategically over his groin.]
Sincerely,
KellyJo
Genre: contemporary, cowboys
Tags: cowboys, Australian, punishment, spanking, leather
Content warning: mild BDSM
Words: 7,125
FINDING JACK
by Penny Brandon
“You’ve got to be crazy. You do realize you could get fired? Or your ass reamed?”
“That’s what I’m hoping.”
“To get fired?”
“Nope, to get my ass reamed. Hard.” Dale laughed, sticking his booted foot in the metal stirrup and hauling himself up into the warm leather saddle. He adjusted the reins, holding his bay mare steady as he grinned down at his friend. “Hard and good.”
“You sure you want to do this?”
Dale sobered a little from the high he was climbing. “Yes. If this doesn’t make him notice me, nothing will.”
“And what if he doesn’t? In the way you want him to, that is? Then what? You leave?”
Not wanting to think that far ahead, Dale shook his head. “When he knows how much I want him…” God, this had better work, he couldn’t keep loving a man who didn’t know he existed. Dragging in a deep breath, Dale twisted a little in the saddle and tipped the brim of the white Akubra hat on his head. “Just wish me luck, okay?”
The dark skinned face that looked up at him seemed grim, until it smiled and a bright flash of white teeth transformed the Aboriginal features. “Fella, you’re gonna need more than bloody luck. You’re gonna need a miracle.” Then in an act of resignation, Pete, the ranch manager and reluctant cohort in Dale’s desperate exploit, slapped the horse on the rump, setting it off on something Dale hoped he wasn’t going to regret.
The house was set back from the rest of the buildings, its weatherboard walls, despite the overhanging bullnose veranda, were bleached white in the harsh Australian sun. It had stood empty for years before the current owner had moved in, the land it stood on dotted by tall Eucalypt and Silver Gum. Dale liked that it stood a fair distance from the main house; the one now used for the ranch hands, it gave the owner privacy, and therefore Dale’s open invitation some privacy as well. Not that there wasn’t a single man on the ranch who didn’t know what the hell he was doing and why. Except for Jack Hawthorn, the aforementioned owner of the ranch, and the sexiest man Dale had ever laid eyes on - he hadn’t got a damn clue.
Dale’s heart ached a little at that. For too damn long he’d waited for Jack to notice him, acknowledge him, want him, but his boss had hardly even looked his way, and Dale couldn’t take it anymore. So today, after months of trying, he’d come up with this crazy stunt to get Jack’s attention once and for all. And it really was crazy, and he could get fired, but Dale was prepared for that. Actually, if this didn’t work, he was going to have to leave anyway. Living here, so close to the man he loved without being able to act on it, hurt, and Dale was fed up of feeling that kind of pain.
As he neared the house, Dale squinted against the setting sun’s glare, frowning as he noticed Jack’s horse standing listlessly in the shade of one of the gum trees. It wasn’t tethered and Dale grew concerned, knowing Jack would never leave his prize Quarterhorse unsecured. Spurring his horse on, Dale quickly closed in on the black stallion, his concern turning to outright fear as he spotted blood on the stallion’s shoulder.
Quickly dismounting, Dale grabbed the loose reins and while making soothing noises checked for a wound. Finding none, however, didn’t alleviate Dale’s fear, in fact it increased it. If the blood didn’t belong to the horse there was only one other source – Jack’s. Without a second thought, Dale threw himself back onto his own mare and while fumbling for his satellite phone to inform Pete, he took off in the direction Jack had gone that morning. Thank God he’d been watching Jack today. Well, he watched Jack every day and knew his obsession could be classed as borderline stalking, but under the circumstances he was pretty glad he did.
An hour into a hard ride, with panic eating at him, Dale thought he saw some movement ahead. This was part of the ranch that didn’t yet have cattle, but kangaroos and camels quite often roamed the open ground and though Dale didn’t want to get his hopes up, the shadowed shape he now had his gaze trained upon looked nothing like a kangaroo or a camel, but like a man. Digging his heels in, Dale pushed his horse to go faster, mindful of the treacherous holes dug by dingos and wombats. There was nothing worse than being brought down by a misplaced hoof, and going as fast as he was now he’d hit the ground hard enough to break something, and he didn’t even want to consider the possible damage to his horse.
As he got closer, the shape revealed itself and Dale could now clearly see Jack, standing with legs spread wide, hands planted firmly on hips, hat tilted across his smooth brow, waiting. Relief swamped Dale, blanketing every other thought, every other emotion, and he paid no heed to anything else other than to make sure Jack was okay. Reining his mare in, Dale instantly dismounted, his booted feet hitting the ground. Dust puffed up around him and stuck to his sweat soaked body, but Dale barely noticed.
Breathless, he took a step toward Jack, surprised when the man took a step back. “Are you all right?” he asked, eyeing Jack up and down, desperately looking for any sign of injury or harm. Jack looked all right. In fact, to Dale, he looked damn fine. Taller than Dale by a couple of inches, broad shouldered and solid with a tight ass and well-muscled thighs, Jack was everything Dale liked in a man, but what stood Jack out from any other was his beautiful green eyes. Eyes which usually flicked over him with the barest amount of recognition but which were now trained on him with an intensity Dale had never seen before. His stomach flipped a little, but he wasn’t sure if it was from pleasure or alarm.
“I’m fine, just got thrown from my damn horse is all.” Jack took off his hat and slapped it against his thigh raising a filament of dust. “I assume you saw him come home?”
Dale nodded, his attention caught on Jack’s fine blond hair. “Yeah, he was standing next to your house. I rang Pete to come and take care of him and then came looking for you.”
“Like that?”
Oh, fuck!
In his mad dash to find Jack, Dale had all but forgotten, but now, as he stood before his boss, stark naked except for his cowboy hat and boots, Dale realized how crazy he must look, and all at once his stunt to get Jack to notice him seemed the worst thing he could have done,
because the kind of notice he was getting now was not the one he wanted. Jack looked positively pissed.
Jack’s intense gaze travelled slowly down Dale’s body and back up again, his perusal deliberately insolent. Dale felt the heat of it all the way through to his marrow, and despite the circumstances, Dale felt himself respond. He turned away quickly, but not before cursing himself for his stupidity.
“Um, well I was kind of in a rush. I saw the blood and thought you were injured,” he mumbled in response.
“It wasn’t my blood. I shot an injured roo and slung it over Dirk’s shoulder. It fell off when he bolted.”
Dale nodded to show he understood, but he didn’t dare turn back around.
Jack was quiet for a moment, and as Dale fiddled with the stirrup hanging from its strap, he began to wonder what kind of fool he was to think flashing his naked ass at Jack would get him to see him for more than a ranch hand and someone that could be special. Why hadn’t he listened to Pete, or to anyone else with a lick of sense for that matter?
“But what were you doing at my house with no clothes on?”
The softly spoken words forced Dale to face the man he’d loved for two long years. He searched Jack’s dazzling green eyes looking for some sort of interest; he saw nothing but curiosity.
“Well, if you don’t know by now there’s no point in me telling you!” Dale snapped, finally losing patience, but he’d had more than he could take of Jack’s lack of awareness. Or was it deliberate ignorance?
Then something flashed within Jack’s green depths and though he shook his head, he smiled. Actually smiled. Dale sucked in a short sharp breath. Jack had never smiled at him before and seeing it now had him more aware of Jack than ever. The man was stunning, and the way his full mouth lifted at the corners had Dale’s stomach flipping again, and this time Dale knew it was from pleasure.
“I never really thought you’d go to these lengths, Dale. I have to say I’m impressed, though I’m not sure what I’m supposed to do about it.”
Dale bit back a groan and closed his eyes a moment. Jack had just said his name. God, there had been times when Dale was sure Jack didn’t even know his name. Then the gist of Jack’s statement sank home. Dale reopened his eyes and stared. “You know how I feel about you?” he asked, shocked.
“I’d have to be blind not to know, Dale. I’ve seen the way you look at me, the way you linger when I’m talking to Pete or one of the other ranch hands, the way you seem to hang around the stable when you know I’m coming in from a ride or leaving for one. I know you’ve been trying to get me to notice you, but I honestly thought you’d give up after a while.” Jack looked down Dale’s body and back up again like he had before, but instead of curiosity in his eyes this time, there was desire. “I guess I was wrong.”
Dale ignored the hot sizzle that raced to his balls at that look in Jack’s eyes, ignored it and even hated the fact he felt it, because now he was angry. He squared his shoulders and narrowed his eyes and only just kept himself from clenching his hands into fists. “Why the fuck haven’t you said something?” he demanded. “I thought you didn’t even know I existed. My God, Jack, how could you know I love you and not have the courtesy to say something to me? I’ve been at my wits end not knowing what else I could do to get you to notice me, and all this time you knew? How could you do that?” Trying to control his breathing, and his anger, Dale knew he wasn’t succeeding when Jack’s hand on his arm failed to do anything more than make him want to shake it off. Not an hour earlier he would have done anything, said anything, to have Jack touch him.
“Dale –”
“No. don’t! I don’t want your sympathy. How could you be so callus?” Fuck, he hadn’t thought Jack was like that. He just assumed Jack didn’t know, but Jack did know, and hadn’t cared. He turned away, tears stinging his eyes, angry at Jack, but angrier at himself for loving a man who was so obviously heartless.
“Dale, honey…” Jack’s fingers tightened on Dale’s arm and turned him back around. His green eyes had darkened and were staring at him with both compassion and a little confusion. “I didn’t know you loved me. I just thought you wanted to sleep with me.”
Dale lifted his chin and bit his lip to stop it from trembling. He searched Jack’s face wanting to find the truth in his words. “You said you knew how I felt,” he got out, hating that his voice was shaking.
“I thought you were in lust, not in love.” The pad of Jack’s thumb slid along the inside seam of Dale’s elbow. Dale couldn’t stop the shiver that shook his body. Being this close to Jack just did things to him he had no control over. Even now, when he knew he should be withdrawing, he wanted to step closer, wanted to have Jack wrap his arms around him.
“I’m sorry.”
God those words hurt. Dale knew there was a possibility of rejection and knew he wouldn’t like it when it came, but it hurt far more than he’d thought it would. “Yeah, so am I,” he replied, unable to stop a bitter edge creeping into his voice, still smarting from being so rash and naïve. How could he have thought Jack would want him?
But when he tried to pull free of Jack’s grip, Jack stopped him. “No, I don’t think you understand. I’m sorry because I didn’t realize. If I’d known I would have said something. Definitely would have said something, but I didn’t know, and as I don’t do casual hookups…”
“Neither do I,” Dale said quickly. Since meeting Jack, Dale hadn’t let another man touch him, and he really wanted Jack to know that, though he wasn’t sure if that would help any.
“That’s good to know.” Jack stood back and released him and Dale felt the loss intensely, but he warmed at Jack’s words. “Come on, let’s go home,” Jack said, taking the reins out of Dale’s hands.
Dale nodded, feeling a little lost and confused. He slid his foot into the stirrup and swung his leg over the saddle, then removing his foot to give Jack purchase, helped him up. Jack came up behind him and settled in comfortably. It was in that moment that Dale realized how intimately close they were going to be and as his stomach did a flip, he also panicked. After so long wanting Jack he knew how his body was going to react, but he wasn’t sure if Jack would understand. But whether Jack would or not, Dale wasn’t left with any choice when Jack’s arms came around his waist and pulled him into the cradle of Jack’s spread thighs.
“Okay?” Jack’s strong chest was pressed closely to his back and the arms Jack left around his waist were warm and heavy and comforting. His breath washed over Dale’s nape causing goose-bumps to form across Dale’s bare skin, which Jack was sure to notice. But Dale’s problem was Jack’s hands. They were loosely cupped over the pommel, and as Dale looked down he noticed they were within scant inches of his cock.
“Fine.” The word came out as a squeak and the resulting hot wash of embarrassment was doubled as Jack chuckled against his nape.
“Just take it easy,” Jack said, squeezing his thighs and encouraging the horse to move on.
Dale held onto the reins hoping it would give him an anchor to the reality that was slowly slipping away. Jack was plastered to his back, arms around his waist, hands inches from his cock, and Jack was fully aware of how Dale felt about him. Jack had even implied he was okay with it. Sweet fuck, but Dale had never thought he’d get this chance with Jack. Hoped he would, yeah, but believed it? Dale closed his eyes and bit his lip again to stop the moan that was building in his chest a place to escape.
“Relax, Dale”
Dale nodded, but when he opened his eyes, instead of seeing the deep red of the Australian bush spread out before him, he saw himself, spread out on a bed with Jack kneeling between his thighs.
“Kind of hard to do that when I’ve finally got you where I want you,” he said, drawing on the cocky courage he’d had when starting out to snag Jack once and for all.
“And where is that?” Jack’s low murmur as he leaned in close to Dale’s ear caused another shiver to rack Dale’s body, and Jack obviously felt it.
�
�With your arms wrapped around me, holding me.”
“But I’m not holding you, I’m holding the saddle.”
Shit, that wasn’t what Dale meant, but as Dale glanced down and watched his cock stir and to come to life, he decided that maybe that wasn’t such a bad idea after all. “You could hold me,” Dale whispered, wanting to feel the warmth of Jack’s fingers wrap around him, stroke him. Want it? Hell, he was ready to beg for it.
But Jack shook his head. “No, Dale. I don’t think so.”
Like a dagger to his heart, Jack’s words bit painfully deep, and everything Dale might have thought was happening between them crumbled catastrophically around him. He stiffened, his hands tightening around the reins that were threaded between his fingers.
“Do you know why?” Jack’s quite question was a surprise, because they both knew the answer.
“You don’t want me.” Dale tried to keep his voice even, but it was hard when his chest ached and his throat was closing over in humiliation and pain.
“Oh no, babe, I want you, and I have done for a very long time.”
Dale quickly twisted in the saddle, looking back into serious green eyes. “You want me?” Jack’s slow, sexy grin was his answer, and Dale’s stomach did that slow flip again. Positive he was coming apart at the edges, he shook his head. “Then why won’t you touch me?” Dale didn’t get it, and he didn’t understand what Jack was playing at.
“Because I have to punish you first.”
“Punish me?” There wasn’t a single thing Jack could have said then that would have surprised Dale more.
“Yes. Punish you. Do you honestly think you can gallivant around on my ranch, on my horse, stark naked and get away without having to suffer the consequences?”
Though Jack’s eyes remained serious, Dale could see a light smile play about Jack’s lips. He focused on that, suddenly wondering if Jack was playing with him. “What kind of punishment?”
“You’ll find out when I get you home.”
“Are you serious?”
“Deadly.” And by the look Dale could see in Jack’s eyes, he was.
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