Suddenly, where there had been no possibilities before, now there were three…
Rufus was the first to speak. His carefully worded, “Good afternoon, Miss Angela,” had a profound effect on every man in the room. Smiles disappeared only to be replaced with solemn, respectful demeanors.
I, on the other hand, was determined not to let him spoil my fun. Smiling, I waved a hand in greeting. “Hi, Rufus. You know, we really need to replace these mattresses. It’s a wonder the men don’t all have back trouble from sleeping on them.”
“Is that what you’re doing here?” Rufus asked. “Testing the mattresses?”
His cautious questions made me giggle in a manner I knew he disliked. “You’ll have to blame Bull for that. He made me laugh so hard I fell over on the bed. As for why I was here in the first place, I thought maybe Dusty could use some company.”
After a quick glance in Dusty’s direction caught his deer-in-the-headlights expression, I deemed it best to retract that statement. I didn’t want Rufus to be mad at anyone but me.
I giggled again, doing my best to sound annoying. “I’m kidding, Rufus. I was out here checking the supplies when they came in.”
The foreman’s frown diminished, but the glint in his eyes didn’t fade completely. “And what did Bull say that was so funny?”
“I think you had to be there,” I replied. “It loses something in the retelling.”
“I see.”
I knew I hadn’t completely allayed his suspicions, but harping on it would make my story even less convincing. Rubbing a nonexistent backache, I got to my feet with a groan, leaving him to draw his own conclusions. Either way, a change of subject was definitely in order. “So, did you get all the fencing done?”
“Not quite,” Rufus replied. “Two more days should see the job finished.”
I nodded. “Sounds good. I’ll tell Dad. See you guys later.” With another wave, I headed for the door. I fought the urge to swat Joe on the buns as I went by, settling instead for a pat on his shoulder. “Keep smiling, Joe. It looks good on you.”
I left the bunkhouse without a backward glance. Rufus could think what he liked, but now that I was finally seeing the ranch hands in a different light, he would simply have to get over it. He wasn’t my boss, nor was he my father, and I was sick and tired of being alone. The guys were lonely too. Even if I had to sneak them out of the bunkhouse to do it, they were going to have some fun—and so was I.
If Troy didn’t show up in my bedroom that night, I was going to fire his ass as my boy toy or boyfriend or whatever he was. Dusty had flat-out told me he loved me, and life was much too short to be kept waiting forever.
Chapter 11
As it turned out, I didn’t have to wait forever. Troy slipped in at about one o’clock with some interesting news.
“Whoo-ee,” he exclaimed softly. “You should have heard the Miss-Angela-is-strictly-off-limits lecture we got this evening. You might not think you’re a nun, baby, but Ruthless Rufus makes you sound like a candidate for sainthood.”
“You’ve got to be kidding,” I protested. “Trust me, I’m nothing but a worthless little airhead to him. He’s always very polite, of course, but he’s never taken me seriously, especially since Cody died. To make anything I say carry any weight at all, I have to make it sound like a direct quote from my father.”
Troy snuggled in beside me, his welcome presence suffusing me with warm contentment. “Maybe so, but he’s got you up on a pedestal, good and proper. I, on the other hand, think women on pedestals are highly overrated. I prefer my women closer to the ground—makes them easier for someone like me to reach.” To lend credence to that statement, he draped an arm and a leg over me and pulled me against the full length of his body. His hard cock poked me in the stomach. “As far as I’m concerned, you’re the hottest bundle of woman I’ve ever had my arms around.”
“Nice of you to say so,” I drawled. “Especially when I haven’t seen you for days on end.”
He gave me a quick squeeze. “Sorry about that, but I was in no condition to visit you. I’d forgotten what it was like to spend the whole fucking day in the saddle.”
“Not very conducive to fucking, is it?”
“Not at all,” he agreed. “But I think the blisters on my balls have finally callused over.” Burrowing a hand beneath my head, he pulled me closer, brushing a kiss on my cheek. “So, Angie, since you wouldn’t tell Rufus the truth, would you mind telling me what you were doing in the bunkhouse with Dusty?”
“Believe it or not, I went out there hoping to find you. Dusty came in and caught me sniffing your cologne.”
“That explains why he seems so irritated with me. He likes you, Angela. You know that, don’t you?”
“I do now,” I admitted. “He told me as much this afternoon.”
“I’m pretty sure Rufus knows it too. He directed the lion’s share of the lecture right at him. He didn’t mention any names, but I’d be willing to bet Dusty won’t be visiting you anytime soon, not unless he wants Rufus on his ass day and night.”
“Since Dusty’s never visited me before, I don’t think he’ll start now.” I paused as another thought occurred to me. “I’m curious, though. Did Rufus say anything to Joe?”
Troy chuckled against my neck, releasing tendrils of desire that triggered a delightful tingle in my nipples.
“Not really,” he replied. “But you should’ve heard Joe after Rufus left and we all went to bed. I figured you’d only said that to put Rufus off the scent, but you sure made Joe happy. He couldn’t stop talking about it. Do you realize you’ve never so much as touched him before? He probably won’t wash that shoulder for a month.”
As rarely as I’d put a hand on any of the others, it was safe to assume I hadn’t done it to anyone as shy as Joe. I’d never heard him string more than five or six words together at a time, and he was nearly always staring down at the ground when he said them. The fact that he couldn’t stop talking about anything seemed a tad out of character.
“I wanted to pat him on the butt,” I admitted. “Must be your influence. You’ve turned me into a real flirt.”
“You probably oughta flirt some with me too—and be sure you do it in front of Rufus so Joe and Dusty don’t take all the heat. You weren’t kidding when you told me we’d have to be sneaky about this. How in the hell do you think you’re going to get us all out of the bunkhouse for a night on the town? I wouldn’t put it past Rufus to bar the door.”
“I’d like to see him try,” I growled.
“He just might,” Troy said. “We could go without any fuss, but if Rufus knew you were going with us…”
“Sounds like I’ll be the one who has to sneak out,” I said. “I’ve never been able to understand his attitude—or Dad’s. They’re two of a kind when it comes to proper female behavior, but at least I don’t work for him. It’s a wonder the men haven’t all up and quit because of his puritanical attitudes.”
Troy slipped his hands beneath my pajama top and rubbed my back in a sensuous manner, proving his own attitudes were anything but puritanical. “He seems to have them all brainwashed into thinking a woman like you wouldn’t be interested in the likes of them. I wish you could’ve heard the lecture. It was enough to make a man give up and ship out on a freighter for the rest of his life—or get a job mopping floors in a whorehouse.”
“No wonder they act so weird around me! They’ve always made me feel like I’m bestowing some great favor anytime I glance in their direction. Most of them won’t look me in the eye, especially if Rufus is around.”
That also explained what Dusty had said when he asked me to kiss him—that we were alone and no one else would ever know about it. Obviously, he’d meant Rufus. Oh yes, the pedestal I’d been put on explained a lot.
“He is something of a tyrant,” Troy said.
“Yeah, well, I hate to
break it to him, but the men probably wouldn’t give me a second thought if Rufus had kept his mouth shut and left them alone.”
“I doubt that. You’re worth second, third, and fourth thoughts.” He punctuated his sentence with a deep, searing kiss that put a curl in my toes. “I’ve missed you, baby.”
Clearly there was no need for me to fire his ass as my boy toy—yet. Aside from the fact that his ass was much too awesome to ignore, he did have a reasonable excuse. I’d been saddle sore a few times myself.
As I reached around him to get my hands on his adorable tush, I was reminded of at least one other butt that was drool-worthy. Dusty had a pretty nice one. I knew that because I’d been surreptitiously checking it out anytime the opportunity presented itself for quite a while now. I’d even been known to take a peek at it when Cody was alive. As the saying went, I might have been on a diet, but I could still look at the menu.
I couldn’t help wondering who I would pick as the winner of a “Best Buns” contest between my cowboys. Rufus might have won that contest a few years back, but since I was pissed at him, I’d have to disqualify him on the grounds that his butt should be smacked rather than admired. I’d never given any of the others much thought before, which was odd considering my fondness for that particular facet of the male anatomy. I promised myself to pay more attention to them in the future. But at that moment, I had my hands on Troy’s sweet ass, and I fully intended to give it my undivided attention.
Recalling the fantasy that had him on his hands and knees with his butt in my face had me reaching for the switch on my bedside lamp.
“What’s the matter?” Troy asked, squinting at the sudden brightness.
“Nothing,” I replied. “I just want to be able to see you.”
“A candle is easier on the eyes and much more romantic.”
“Sounds good—that is, if I can find one.” Cody and I had used candles from time to time, so I knew I had one somewhere, but it took some digging in the nightstand to find it and a box of matches. I lit the wick and switched off the lamp.
“Would you do something for me?” I asked as I lay back down.
“Sure, babe,” he murmured. “I’ll do anything you like.”
“Turn over on your stomach.”
“No problem.”
The candlelight flickered as it illuminated the contours of his body, highlighting the curves and deepening the shadows as he moved. Contrary to popular belief, men’s bodies aren’t all planes and angles. Soft curvatures flowed over Troy’s back, beginning with the rolled edges of his shoulder blades and on down into the crevice along his spine. Those same curves rose up to form two mounds that fit my hands as though they had been designed specifically for my grasp.
My fingertips tingled as I traced the hollow of his flanks while I knelt between his parted thighs. I took my time, devouring him with each of my senses, delighting in his soft moans when I touched him in ways that pleased him. Urging him up onto his knees, I moved him back against me before rocking him forward once again. The view from that perspective was somewhat voyeuristic, almost as though I were watching him from behind as he made love to someone else. Whatever the cause, it doubled my desire for him.
I pushed him sideways, enabling light to reach the space beneath him. A sparkling ribbon of moisture trailed from the head of his penis, the mere sight of which made me gasp. Some women will tell you such a spectacle does nothing to entice them; I am not one of those women. My body shuddered with anticipation as I took his hard cock in my hand, feeling its weight and girth. Leaning down, I licked the space just above his scrotum, tracing the line where the two halves of him met to form what resembled a scar.
With gentle strokes, I smoothed the warm syrup along his heated skin until he was wet enough to allow my fist to move up and down his shaft in a frictionless glide. I kissed him, sucking the smooth folds of skin into my mouth along with the most sensitive and vulnerable parts of his delectable body. Teasing his testicles with my tongue, I was rewarded as he groaned into his pillow. I wrapped my free arm around his hip for support and settled in to continue for as long as it took to make him come.
Even though I wasn’t getting any attention myself, after a few minutes I was so wet it didn’t matter, and I came twice while I was doing him. I knew he would be hard again in twenty minutes, and I would get my turn, so I kept on, relentlessly massaging his cock and savoring his balls until a loud gasp warned me he was almost there. Releasing his scrotum, I rolled him onto his back. Still gripping his slick, engorged penis, I aimed it at my mouth just as he began to spurt. I didn’t miss a drop as I went down on him.
Troy seemed almost frantic, reaching for me, begging me not to move because he couldn’t take any more. His cock pulsed again and again in the most prolonged male orgasm I’d ever witnessed. Finally, when I thought he could stand it, I sucked his dick dry and moved up to lie beside him.
His eyes were closed, his breathing heavy. Snuggling closer, I lay my hand on his chest. Troy reached up, touching my hand briefly before his arm flopped back down.
“I’ll be with you in a minute, baby,” he said. “I’m gonna need a little time to recover from that.”
I let him be and simply lay there, enjoying his warmth and listening to him breathe. How nice it would be to have him with me all the time. So very, very nice…
Bending my knee, I eased my leg over his, increasing my awareness of the slickness between my thighs. I hadn’t been that wet in ages, but I knew it wasn’t only due to the anticipation of what he might do to me. That arousal was the result of the pleasure of knowing he’d enjoyed what I’d done to him. Knowing I had taken him to a level where he truly couldn’t take any more was exhilarating, and it made me long to do it again and again and again. That thought alone sent heat rushing to my core, triggering yet another powerful climax.
Moments later, a miraculously revived Troy began kissing me and pushed me onto my back. Trailing languid kisses from my lips to my breasts, he moved ever downward over my tingling body until he buried his face in my pussy. Once there, he did the most delightful things with his tongue, flicking my clitoris until I thought I’d go mad, then delving deeply for several undulating strokes before starting again. He seemed to be as comfortable as I had been and appeared to have every intention of eating my pussy until I came in his mouth. Still, I couldn’t stop thinking about that cream-covered dick of his. I knew I’d never be satisfied until I tasted more of it.
Troy must have read my mind because he got up and turned around. “Hey, Angie,” he whispered. “How about sucking my dick while I lick you?”
I caught a brief glimpse of his hard, glistening cock before he slid it past my lips and settled down on me, drawing my clit into his mouth. We sucked each other for possibly three ecstatic minutes until he came with a groan, spurting his seed down my throat. As if his cock in my mouth and his mouth on me weren’t enough, he pushed his thumb inside, sweeping circles around my slick inner walls. With a multitude of overwhelming sensations bombarding me at once, I climaxed almost immediately. My orgasmic scream was stifled by the thick cock in my mouth. Otherwise I’m sure even Dad would have heard me.
With a great deal of reluctance, I let go of him and he reversed his position to lie beside me. Taking me in his arms, he kissed me in a lazy, relaxed fashion that reminded me of a slow Southern drawl. I have no idea how long he kept it up, but I was drifting in and out of sleep when he murmured, “Once more and I’ve got to go.”
I’m sure I must’ve muttered something suitable in reply because he rose up on his knees and found his way inside me yet again, this time using his awesome cock instead of his tongue or his thumb. By then I was so thoroughly fucked I couldn’t even raise my head.
Apparently Troy had more energy left than I did. Scooping up my legs, he placed my feet on his shoulders before picking up a steady rhythm that seemed to go on for days. I should’ve been long pa
st caring whether I ever had another orgasm again, but his cock slowly brought me to life. Soon he had me moaning in ecstasy as my core gripped his cock. His third climax of the night was longer in coming than the first two, but it gave me no less satisfaction.
When he finally left me, I was on the verge of sleep, fully intending to dream up some excuse to double his salary at my earliest opportunity.
Chapter 12
I awoke the next morning feeling better than I had in years—fresh, invigorated, and satisfied. The weather was absolutely beautiful with a sky so clear and blue it hurt my eyes to look at it. The heat wave we’d been experiencing seemed to have passed, the temperature having drifted down to a more normal range. I drove into town to do some shopping, noting that the price of gas had fallen as well.
Unfortunately, anytime I have such a perfect day, storm clouds are nearly always lurking beyond the horizon. I’ve noticed I often feel the best just before I come down with some bug or other. Perhaps my body knows it’s been invaded and the marshaling of the troops gives me an overall boost of adrenaline, but whatever the reason, I can feel my blood pumping and my heart singing.
Granted, amazing sex can evoke a similar response, but I’d had other highly satisfying encounters in my life. This was different, although I couldn’t have said why. All I knew was that as I strolled down the grocery aisles, I felt taller, stronger, and more beautiful than ever before. I might have been living inside a different body, one that fit me better and reacted more promptly to my directions—the body I should have had all along. My mood never faltered, even after I paid a small fortune for a few sacks of perfectly ordinary groceries. On the way home, I rolled the windows down and cranked up the radio, singing nonstop at the top of my lungs until I drove up to the house.
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