The legs of the chair Carla was sitting on scraped across the floor as she hurriedly stood up. Her aunt lived on a small ranch that was in the middle of nowhere. It was a million miles away from New York City in every respect and she could think of nothing worse than being stuck there.
“You can’t be serious,” she exclaimed. “I don’t want to go there.”
“It’s not about what you want,” her mother informed her. “We’re looking after your best interests and doing what we think is right for you.”
“But my life is here,” Carla let out. “I can’t just give up college.”
“We’re not expecting you to,” her father replied. “There are only a few weeks to go before your summer break. I’ll speak to the college today and make your excuses for being away and explain that you’ll be back for the start of the new college year. If we see a change in your attitude by that time, you can come home and resume your studies.”
“No…, no I won’t do it,” Carla shouted.
“We’re not giving you a choice in the matter.” her mother said in a raised voice. “You either do as we say or you can forget about college all together. We won’t pay another cent towards your education and as far as we’re concerned you can leave this house and find your own way in the world. You seem to think you’re all grown up and can do as you please, but if you want to live under our roof and be supported by us you’ll live by the rules we set.”
“This isn’t fair,” Carla whined.
“Life isn’t,” her father snapped. “You can either go to your aunt’s ranch for the next few months and sort your head out or you can find somewhere else to stay and start looking after yourself.”
Carla slumped back down in her seat. She wanted to argue that she shouldn’t go, but could see the expressions on the faces of her parents and knew their minds were made up. If she went against their wishes she wasn’t sure what she would do or where she would go. She hated to admit it, but knew there really was only one thing she could do. Her previous trips to stay with her aunt were vacations that lasted no more than a week or so and she remembered being desperate to get back to the city before the end of them. It didn’t bode well for what she was now being made to do.
“Well?” her father said. “What’s it to be?”
Carla kept her head bowed and her gaze on the table. She didn’t want to say the words, but in the end could see no way of avoiding it and looked up.
“I’ll go,” she said simply and got to her feet to walk out the kitchen without saying any more.
Chapter Two
Carla’s fingers dug in the armrest of the seat as the plane hurtled down the runway. It wasn’t as if it was the first time she’d flown, but she couldn’t stop the apprehension that sprang up in her mind as the wheels left the ground to send them soaring up into the sky. A glance towards the ground showed the buildings of NYC getting gradually smaller and she wished she’d taken an aisle seat. The view out of the window only reminded her that she was leaving the city, so she hauled the shade down so she didn’t have to watch.
She tried to relax as the plane reached its cruising altitude, but the occasional turbulence graphically reminded her of where she was and she just wanted back on the ground. It was more than three hours before that happened and the heat of a Texas afternoon hit her when she walked out the terminal building. The sweat beaded on her forehead and she wiped the back of her hand across it as she walked in the direction of the bus stops. She found the service she needed and was glad to get in the air conditioned cool of the vehicle. Her mind went over the past couple of days and she shook her head.
“If only you went home instead of getting in that fucking car,” she muttered under her breath.
It was too late for that now. What started as a simple trip to the mall led to her being sent away from home and she wasn’t sure when she would get back to it. She tried to take her mind off her troubles as the bus pulled away from the stop. The journey was going to end at her Aunt Katherine’s ranch and she wasn’t looking forward to that at all. It wasn’t that she didn’t like her aunt, but her mother’s sister was a bit of a disciplinarian.
Carla tried to remember the last time she was actually at the ranch. Her parents often visited it when she was a little girl, but in recent years they didn’t go so much. In fact she reckoned it was around four years since she was at the place. Not that she complained too much about that. Vacations at the ranch were more like working holidays where everyone was given their chores to help with the running of the place. Her aunt was a stickler for everyone chipping in and helping around the place when they stayed.
It would be no different this time and Carla knew she was about to endure what was likely to be a tough few months. Not that there was a choice in the matter and if she wanted to get back to her life in NYC, she would just have to knuckle down and get on with it. It was all that was on her mind as the journey progressed and she knew the experience was getting closer as the view out the window changed from a cityscape to open countryside. She closed her eyes and rested her head on the back of the seat to try and just relax, but it proved difficult to do as her mind continued to tick over.
What was happening to her was an injustice as far as she was concerned and she wondered just how much her parents told her aunt about what actually happened. Not that it really mattered to be honest and she resigned herself to just getting on with things as best she could. The hour long journey ended when she stepped off the bus onto a dusty road. The small town didn’t seem to have changed much from the last time she was there, so she set off for the taxi office.
“What can I do for you Miss,” the old man behind the counter said when she walked through the door.
“I need a ride out to the Harper Ranch,” she replied. “How much will it cost?”
“You have business out there?” the man asked as he ignored her question.
It wasn’t exactly a surprise to Carla and the small town inquisitiveness of people was something she remembered from previous visits. Not that she was going to tell the man anything.
“Something like that,” she said. “How much will it cost for the ride?”
“A trip to Harper Ranch is thirty dollars,” he replied this time.
“Is there someone available to go right now?” Carla went on.
The man pointed through the window towards a battered old station wagon parked at the front of the building.
“Hank can take you,” the man said.
Carla recalled the routine and took out her purse to get the money. When she handed it over, she got a ticket in return with the name of the destination on it.
“Thanks,” she said and turned to leave the office.
She opened the door of the vehicle and saw Hank’s head jolt up from the back of the driver seat as she got in. He turned to look at her and she simply handed across the ticket without saying anything.
“Harper Ranch,” Hank said as he checked the destination.
“Yes, Harper Ranch,” Carla confirmed.
She waited for the question about what her business was there, but it didn’t come. It seemed that Hank was less interested in what she was going there for than his boss. That suited her fine and as the engine of the old vehicle spluttered to life, she rested her head on the seat back and closed her eyes.
“We’re almost there Miss,” Hank said.
It was the first words out of his mouth since the journey started and Carla opened her eyes to a familiar sight. They were just turning off the highway and passed under the large wooden gates with Harper Ranch carved in them. She knew that the wide dirt track they were now on led right to the front of the property and she prepared herself to meet her aunt. The ranch house came in view when they crested a small hill and it brought back a myriad of memories from her previous visits.
She kept her gaze on the property as they approached it and expected to see her aunt come out the door. It didn’t happen and there was still no sign of her as Hank brought the st
ation wagon to a stop at the bottom of the steps that led up to the porch.
“Thanks,” Carla said and took a five dollar bill out of her purse.
“Very kind of you Miss,” Hank said as he accepted the tip. He reached for a card in his pocket and held it out. “Just give me a call if you need a ride,” he went on. “No need to go through the office and I’ll give you a cheaper fare.”
Carla accepted the card and saw the name and phone number on it. She nodded her head then grabbed hold of her bag and opened the door to get out. As soon as she closed it again the vehicle set off back down the dirt track towards the ranch gates and she watched as it disappeared into the distance.
“No escape now,” she said under her breath and turned her attention to the ranch house.
Her nerves came on stronger as she made her way up the short flight of stairs and across the porch to the door. She dropped her bag and wiped her hand across her forehead. Sweat was already prickling on her skin and it wasn’t just caused by the heat of the afternoon. She wondered what type of greeting she would receive from her aunt, but knew there was only one way to find out.
“Here goes,” she let out quietly and lifted her hand to knock.
The sound of approaching footsteps came to her and she inhaled deeply as the door opened. It wasn’t her aunt she found herself looking at though and the surprised words came out of her mouth before she could stop them.
“Who the hell are you?”
An easy smile spread across the handsome face of the man and Carla couldn’t stop the sudden quickening of her heartbeat. His untidy blonde fringe flopped down over a tanned forehead and piercing blue eyes stared at her. The man looked to be in his mid twenties and the rolled up sleeves of his shirt revealed muscular arms.
“I’m Brad,” the man replied and the smile on his face turned to a teasing grin. “Who the hell are you?”
Carla’s eyes opened wider as she ran her gaze down his body and back up again to his face. It wasn’t only his arms that were muscular and his impressive physique was obviously that of a ranch hand. She opened her mouth to speak, but closed it again when her mind failed in coming up with anything to actually say. Brad let out a laugh as he held out his hand. She took it and noticed that he held on just a bit longer than he really needed to during the greeting.
“I’m sorry,” he apologized for his teasing. “You must be Carla. Your aunt told me you would be arriving today. Come on in.”
He reached down to pick up her bag and moved aside as he opened the door wider.
“Umm…, who exactly are you?” Carla asked as she remained where she was.
“I work for your aunt,” Brad replied.
“What?” Carla let out. “As a butler to let in guests?”
Brad laughed at the comment and shook his head.
“Not quite,” he replied. “I work as a ranch hand.”
Carla remembered the older man that worked on the place in the past. He was still there the last time she visited although admittedly that was four years ago.
“Where’s Smithy?” she asked.
“Who?” Brad asked.
“The ranch hand that used to work for my aunt,” Carla answered.
Brad shrugged his shoulders.
“I guess he must have left, but I don’t really know,” he replied. “I just started working for your aunt a few months ago. Are you coming in?”
Carla let out a sigh. There wasn’t much else she could do.
“I guess,” she said and stepped over the threshold.
Brad was already closing the door and his arm brushed against hers as she moved past him. It amazed her that such a simple touch could have an effect on her, but her pulse raced faster.
“I just made some coffee if you want one,” Brad said.
Carla simply nodded her head and followed after him when he moved along the hallway. Her eyes dropped to taut buttocks straining against tight denim and she let out a quiet rush of breath. She couldn’t pull her gaze away and only did so when they stepped in the kitchen and Brad turned to look at her.
“How do you take yours?” he asked.
“Just some milk,” Carla replied.
She moved to the table to sit down and her eyes remained fixed on the muscular physique of a handsome man. It was the stuff of sexual fantasies, but she tried to keep her mind from that as she watched Brad pour coffee from the pot. She only spoke again when he came to the table and put a mug in front of her.
“So, where exactly is my aunt?” she asked.
“Problems with her divorce apparently,” Brad replied as he sat down. “Her ex-husband is now in Delaware, so she needed to fly there to try and get things finalized.”
“She couldn’t do it from here?” Carla asked.
“I’m just the hired help on the ranch,” Brad answered with a grin. “I’m not exactly a confidante of your aunt. She told me she needed to fly to Delaware to meet with a lawyer and that’s as much as I know.”
“But she knew I was coming today.”
Brad nodded his head.
“That’s why I’m here,” he told her. “Your aunt told me to wait in for you otherwise I would have been out on the ranch working.”
“So she just left me here alone with you,” Carla went on and picked up her mug to take a sip.
The grin spread across Brad’s face.
“Don’t worry, I’m house trained,” he teased her. “I won’t bite you.”
The cheeky comment put an image in Carla’s mind. She barely knew the man sitting opposite her, but the idea of his mouth on her body was one that made her squirm on her seat and she felt the warmth of a blush on her face and neck. Her hand trembled as she raised the mug to her lips again and she was aware that she was being watched by deep blue eyes. She kept her gaze lowered though.
“When will my aunt be back?” she asked.
“She said she would be back tonight and I haven’t heard any different,” Brad answered. “So I’m guessing her plans haven’t changed.”
“OK,” Carla said.
There was silence for a few seconds and it was Brad that asked the next question.
“So…, what brings you here anyway?”
The events of the last few days flashed through Carla’s mind, but she wasn’t about to reveal them to a man who was virtually a stranger to her. She shrugged her shoulders in an attempt at nonchalance when she spoke.
“My parents thought it would be good for me.”
“Sounds like someone was a bad girl,” Brad said and grinned.
“I was not,” Carla exclaimed, but her protests were ignored.
“Happens to the best of us,” Brad went on. “It’s a pitfall of youth and parents always think they know best.”
“You sound like you’re speaking from experience,” Carla said.
“Yeah, kind of,” he replied. “I was nearly arrested a few months ago.”
Carla was intrigued.
“For what?” she asked.
“For hitting a complete asshole,” Brad said and shook his head. “It was in self defense I have to say, but unfortunately the asshole was the son of the town mayor.” He shrugged his shoulders. “Who do you think they’re going to believe? I was given the option of being charged for assault or leaving town.” He took a drink of his coffee before going on. “It wasn’t much of a choice and I decided that leaving town was in my best interests.”
“What did your parents say?” Carla asked.
“They weren’t exactly thrilled, but what could they do,” he replied.
“And you ended up here,” Carla went on.
Brad nodded his head as he took another sip of his coffee. He put the mug down as he went on.
“Stopped in town and heard that your aunt was locking for hired help on her ranch,” he told her. “She was good enough to take me on and I’ve been working here for a couple of months. It seemed like it was going to be a quiet life, but things are looking up.”
Carla tensed at his words and
glanced up. The smile on Brad’s face sent her pulse racing again, but she was quick to drop her gaze. The tension in the air brought out her nerves and the image of an eager mouth kissing on her naked skin flashed through her head. She tried to think of something to say to change the subject, but her mind came up blank. It was the sound of the front door opening and closing that broke the silence.
“Who’s that?” she asked.
Brad said nothing as he looked towards the door of the room. Carla’s eyes opened wide as his absolute double walked in the kitchen and she looked back and forth between two identical faces. The only difference was the man at the door had short cropped hair.
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