‘We’ll remember that Bar, you need anything?’
‘Nope, I’m all okay.’
Dan nodded and pulled Weiser to the right and started walking out towards the first pasture. ‘Well, if you need anything just go on in, you know where everything is.’
‘Enjoy the ride,’ Barnie called back before disappearing beneath the tarpaulin.
Dan dug his heels in and Weiser snorted and started to trot, the pasture’s fence was coming up and Dan gee’d him on and gave the horse his head and Weiser kicked up a gear. They cleared the fence easily and Dan whooped as Weiser tore through the grass. The other horses were off to the south of the pasture and they turned their heads as Dan galloped by.
Dan felt the wind in his hair and the power of the horse beneath him. They crossed the pasture quickly and Dan shouted out, ‘Weiser; let it buck!’ The horse cleared the fence and they were moving quickly up in to the wooded hills and Dan slapped his hand against Weiser’s neck.
‘Yeah boy!’
The horse followed an old deer trail high up in to the hills and Dan brought the horse around on to the ridge that ran parallel to the pastures below. Trees whipped by as the horse easily navigated its way instinctively up slopes and through small depressions in the land, they charged up through the stream that flowed down out of the hills.
The ranch came with close to a hundred square miles of land, the only provision being that the trails be kept open to other riders and hikers and Dan had no problem with that, however, if anyone crossed over the fence that ran around the property about a mile out from the ranch it would be a different matter.
They startled a buck which charged up a bank and Dan laughed. He rode down off of a bluff and back in to the stream and let the horse lower its head to the water. Dan gripped the saddle’s horn and patted the horse’s shoulders; for the first time he thought that he and Chloe might be safe from any further danger and he was truly thankful for the life that he now had.
Later that week their belongings from the UK arrived and Chloe wouldn’t let Dan help as she spent two days putting everything where she wanted it. On the second floor of the house she had asked Barnie to knock an archway between the master bedroom and the first of four guest rooms. That room she had painstakingly turned in to the wardrobe she’d always wanted. Shelves had been put up along with drawers and rails. She’d built with time and patience a complete wall rack for her shoes.
‘How many have you got?’ Dan had asked with amusement and Chloe had scowled at him and said, ‘A woman can never have too many shoes, and I don’t hear you complaining when I’m wearing them for you.’
When they had gone shopping in the city Chloe had bought a beautiful pine dresser with a high revolving mirror where she would sit and make herself gorgeous for Dan.
Downstairs she had turned one of the reception rooms in to a library come study and she had arranged bookcases to house Dan’s considerable book collection.
‘And you complained about my shoes,’ Chloe joked as she unpacked another box of books. ‘How many are there?’
‘About five hundred, they’re all first editions and some are worth quite a bit.’
‘I’ll be careful.’ Chloe had painstakingly arranged the cases by author. In one corner of the room was a desk with a computer set up on it, broadband and Wi-Fi was throughout the home. A deep wine coloured leather sofa was along the only free wall and above this she had hung three large pictures; each one a different shot of them on their wedding day.
Plush rugs were scattered throughout the house and the dining room with its floor to ceiling windows that gave them a view out over the stables and pastures featured an oak dining set that sat eight. They didn’t eat in here, they preferred to sit out on the porch but when her parents came to visit she wanted them to see that she had thought of them.
Dan’s shooting trophies sat in a wall length glass case with her various swimming trophies in the room at the back of the house that they called the rec-room, in here was the only television in the house; a big 72 inch plasma mounted on a wall. Beneath it sat entertainment equipment but since moving in they hadn’t used the room, they didn’t seem to find the time to just sit and watch a film, the views outside overshadowed anything that a screen could convey. But during the winter they figured it would be nice to curl up on the three-seater lounger and watch a DVD; they had no television service, they had both been adamant that they had no wish to watch day time television or the news, they didn’t want to know what was going on out their among the mad people that ran the world.
‘We need some paintings though, all the walls are so bare, apart from a dozen wedding photos and a few of my parents we have way too much blank to look at.’
Dan agreed. ‘We’ll have a look in town; Barnie said there are a couple of decent antique stores, and who knows maybe we’ll hang some of my work one day.’
Chloe had cocked her head at him. ‘You paint?’
Dan laughed, ‘Good God no, but I used to do a bit of photography, I’ve been thinking about taking it up again, there’s some beautiful country out there.’
‘Sounds good.’ Chloe was pleased that Dan wanted to keep busy; she knew how he struggled with what had happened with Terry. She didn’t want Dan to slip in to a depression; she wanted him to have as many hobbies as possible. ‘Perhaps we can have a look in town for a camera and stuff next time we’re in there.’
Dan kissed her and lifted her off her feet and walked her upstairs and in to the master bedroom. He lowered her to the bed and said, ‘We’ll do that.’ He kissed her again and she moved beneath him, freeing him and she spread her legs and he slipped her dress up over her stomach and slid inside her.
‘I found out today that up at the ski lodge they have a swimming pool, we’ll have to go swimming soon; I miss swimming.’
‘Sounds like a plan Chloe.’
Chloe washed Dan’s back; she was sat behind him in the huge sunken bath in their en-suite bathroom. The widow Madison had taste; Chloe fell in love with the bathroom on seeing it for the first time.
Dan stroked her feet beneath the water; she had her legs wrapped around his waist. Chloe finished soaping his back and pressed her breasts against his back and kissed his shoulder. She kissed the scar from the bullet wound and Dan tensed up and Chloe whispered, ‘I love your scars baby, they remind me how close I came to losing you.’
Dan relaxed and Chloe reached around him and stroked his cock until he was hard.
‘Do you think you can go again?’
‘What do you think?’
Chloe ran her hands up his hardness and whispered, ‘I get to go on top this time.’
That weekend Dan took Chloe away for a romantic break in the city.
‘I don’t want you missing the city,’ he had told her when he had dropped the surprise on her.
Chloe had loved the idea and packed a case whilst Dan had left instructions with Rosie and checked in with Barnie.
‘It’s coming on nicely,’ Dan told her as they drove out on to the highway. ‘Reckons it’ll be finished by the end of August; maybe the first week of September.’
‘It’ll be good to sit in there and eat our supper and watch the sun go down.’
‘Yeah, it sure will,’ Dan had replied and left it at that.
The weekend went by fast, Chloe loved seeing the city at night, they dined out and visited nightclubs and although Dan felt a little out of place surrounded by the vibrancy of youth Chloe helped by not leaving his side the entire time. She loved to dance for him and with him and she was oblivious to the leers and come-ons from other younger men.
They stayed for three nights in a five star hotel and Chloe took full advantage of the hotel’s spa and swimming pool.
On the Monday morning that they were to check out Dan had gotten up early and made a phone call, the reply down the line was music to his ears. Dan laid out clothes for Chloe to wear that day and had then ordered breakfast.
When Chloe woke up she’d stretche
d like a lioness and smiled at him. ‘Come back to bed baby, I want your cock up my ass.’
Dan turned the Volvo on to their property and slowed as he drove past the pastures; Weiser recognised them and trotted alongside the fence, the other horses were further across the paddock but raised their heads to look at the Volvo.
‘Hi’ya buddy,’ Dan called out.
The horse chuffed and chortled and Chloe smiled and said, ‘I swear that animal looks for you.’ Chloe leant across Dan’s lap and called out to Weiser, ‘Did you miss your master?’
Dan turned his left hand over and squeezed Chloe’s breasts through the thin cashmere dress. Chloe sat back in her seat and playfully slapped at his grabbing.
‘What’s got in to you today? Three times already; you want to go for the record or something?’
Dan accelerated along the dirt road and Weiser kept pace before surging ahead and veering off to the right. Dan and Chloe watched the magnificent animal buck and kick out as it galloped away across the paddock.
‘Guess you’ll want to go for a ride soon?’
Dan smiled at Chloe.
‘Later maybe, though if you like I could ride you again.’
‘Something’s got in to you. What are you up to?’ Chloe was smiling at him. She had turned in her huge seat to face him and Dan smiled as she lifted her dress and showed him her lacy white knickers.
‘Nothing; just nice to be home.’
‘Sure.’ Chloe watched a hawk floating high on a westerly current. ‘You haven’t picked out clothes for me to wear for months, it’s not our anniversary and I know it’s not your birthday, so what’s the special occasion?’
‘Nothing; I just fancied what you’re wearing.’
‘Uh-huh, whatever,’ Chloe laughed.
Dan had laid out for her a white cashmere dress, white knickers and a pair of heeled sandals. The dress like the others she owned was close to see-through so she could see why he had chosen it. When the sun was behind her you could see her knickers through the material and without a bra her nipples had been hard all day pushing against the cashmere.
Dan pulled the Volvo in next to the Ford and switched off the engine.
Dan honked the horn twice and Chloe jumped at the sound.
‘What?’ Chloe asked.
Dan pointed out the windscreen at the tarpaulin wrapped extension.
‘The extension; so?’
‘Just be patient.’
Dan got out of the Volvo and Chloe opened her door and walked around to Dan. A wind blew up her dress and Dan held her against him, her ass against his groin, and his arms over her shoulders, his hands caressing her breasts through the dress.
‘What are you up to baby?’ Chloe asked as she slipped her arms back behind him and linked her hands along his lower back.
‘Watch.’
The tarpaulin slowly began to slide from the large extension as Barnie cut all the ties, it took quite a while, and they watched Barnie tugging and pulling and then the three storey circular structure was revealed and Chloe held her breath.
Barnie climbed up in to his truck and reversed out of his space and then stopped next to Dan and Chloe. He leaned his elbow out the window and said, ‘Dan, it’s all finished, I’ll pop by in the morning to finish up, but figured you’d all want to be alone.’
‘Thanks Bar,’ Dan said.
Chloe managed to nod her head and shot a smile at Barnie.
Barnie tipped his cap and drove off.
‘It looks beautiful.’
The extension was like a circular tower on the side of the ranch. Six foot square panels of glass went around the structure 180 degrees and were on the ground floor as well as the upper two floors. The roof was conical and a weather vane shaped like a rearing horse made out of metal was situated on the tip of the roof.
The extension was 60 feet across and the sloping roof was a good twenty five feet higher than the rest of the ranch.
Sunlight reflected off all the glass. Bamboo blinds hung at the ground floor windows.
Dan took Chloe’s hand and led her down along the house and around to a set of stairs so that one could enter the “lighthouse” without having to go through the main house. A pair of patio doors was at the top of the steps.
Dan opened the doors and flicked a light switch on the interior wall, small outdoor lamps lit the step area and Dan said, ‘I think we’ll lay some turf out here, maybe get a swing bench, the sun sets right over the woods back there, this would be a good spot to watch it.’
Chloe nodded, ‘I can’t believe it looks exactly like we wanted, let’s go inside, see if the layouts are like we envisioned.’
Dan took her arm before Chloe could start to climb the steps. ‘Barnie said there’d been difficulties with the ground floor so it may not look exactly like a conservatory.’
Chloe kissed Dan’s cheek, ‘Never mind, I’m sure we’ll love it, come on, it’s a new room waiting to be christened,’ Chloe giggled as she started up the steps. Dan flicked another set of switches and the interior was lit and the sound Chloe made almost burst his ear drums. She squealed with delight and turned to Dan with a pout.
‘You bastard, no wonder you wanted to keep me out of here,’ Chloe said playfully.
The ground floor housed a fair sized indoor swimming pool, sunk in to the wooden floor and was a perfect circle. Lights illuminated the pool from beneath and other lights sunk in to the room’s walls lit the area perfectly.
Six oak support beams ran around the pool’s edges and supported the ceiling; the centre of the ceiling, directly over the pool was cut out so anyone on the second floor could look down in to the water below.
‘It’s about six feet deep at this end and over there by the stairs its closer to eight, Barnie couldn’t go any deeper as the foundations wouldn’t allow it, its fed by a pump and is heated, and...’
Chloe put her fingers to his lips. She had tears in her eyes. ‘It’s beautiful Dan, I didn’t suspect a thing.’
Dan pointed at the spiral staircase and they walked up the stairs to the second floor, Dan let Chloe lead so that he could watch her ass.
On the second floor an eight foot wide walkway led around the hole in the floor. The windows offered views across their property and Chloe said, ‘Dan, it’s so good, look at those views.’
Dan nodded as he followed Chloe across to the next spiral staircase, again Chloe led and she allowed him to caress her ass as she climbed the staircase in front of him.
The top floor was completely floored and the views up here were out of this world, they could see for miles and the room would become their favourite place to make love; the sun shining through the windows.
‘I figured that I’d turn this room in to a small photographic studio, as you can see Barnie has partitioned off one slice of the room and its totally light proof, that’ll become my dark room, he’s put air vents in so any chemical fumes will be swept away, what do you think?’
‘Perfect, it’s all perfect.’
They headed back down to the pool room and Chloe told him how she’d decorate the place and then she was crying and Dan held her by the side of the pool and kissed her and then he too felt tears running down his face and Chloe hugged him tighter and said, ‘I knew we’d make it baby, I knew you’d get us through.’
‘I love you Chloe.’
Chloe looked up at him and smiled. ‘I love you too.’
Chloe kicked off her sandals and pulled the dress up over her shoulders and then slipped her knickers down her legs and dived in to the pool. She surfaced and said, ‘Baby, get your ass in here, I’m so going to show you a good time.’
Summer gave way to autumn and winter crept in on them. They celebrated their first anniversary by staying in bed for the whole 24 hours, and the following morning they were both sore and tender. Over the remainder of that year they restored the barn to its former glory, converting the loft in to a home gym and the main area of the barn became a garage and tool shed where they stored feed for t
he horses, in the spring they would look at getting some ducks, for some reason Chloe really wanted a gaggle of brown ducks and a pond. Rosie and Barnie helped them to improve the stables and Dan had a heating contractor put under-the-floor heating throughout the stables.
They painted the entire outside of the barn and quickly settled in to a daily existence that was neither routine nor tedious
They celebrated Chloe’s twentieth birthday and Dan’s thirty-second that year, and already Dan was thinking ahead to Chloe’s twenty-first, he wanted to make it a memorable one.
The first week of December Chloe’s parents came to stay for the month and a fierce storm blew for four days, and both her parents couldn’t believe just how deep the snow was, in places drifts had blown in that buried the earth beneath twelve feet of snow.
The storm broke the following week and they all went in to Rockspur and spent the day shopping for decorations and the largest Christmas tree that they could find.
Christmas came and went and to Dan it was like no other before, having loved-ones around him made the festive holiday magical and the saucy Santa suit that Chloe had bought to wear as a special treat when they went to bed was one of the seasonal highlights as far as he was concerned.
Ron and Jean loved the ranch and couldn’t believe how beautiful and serene a lifestyle that their daughter and son-in-law now lived. When they flew home late in the first week of January it was Dan that suggested to Chloe on their way home from the airport that maybe she should suggest to her parents that they think of moving to Montana too.
‘I’m sure they’d find a lovely place in Rockspur.’
Chloe had loved the idea and smiled and said, ‘Rockspur; close but not too close?’
Rage Against The Machine: Special Edition (Dan & Chloe Book 1) Page 48