by Vi Summers
Another sharp pain cutting across my scalp was dulled by the pleasure of Louisiana rocking against my jean-restricted erection.
With gruff movements, I released her long enough to start removing her clothes. When she stood to kick off her jeans, I shoved mine down, then tore at my shirt. I needed her so badly I nearly whimpered when I delayed sinking in her by reaching for the bedside drawer.
I stopped Louisiana sprawling across my bed by wrapping a hand around the back of her thigh.
“Not this time, darlin’. I want to watch you ride me.”
The breath visibly left her lungs, then quickened to match the aching desire that all but choked the life from my veins.
One demanding tug was all it took to resettle her in my lap. While Louisiana lowered herself onto my dick, I palmed her breasts and divided my attention between her pebbled nipples.
She sank deep and took every inch of me with a pace that had me growing impatient. I cursed when she settled heavily and anchored there with my fingers gripping her hips. Louisiana’s mouth opened as her eyelids fell closed, releasing a pleasure-filled moan.
“Take control before I lose mine,” I growled through gritted teeth, grinding in deep again, torn between losing all restraint and grappling to regain it.
Her palms slapped against my bare chest and shoved. “Lie back.”
I fell against the bedcover and raised my palms. “Yes, ma’am!”
Her laughter turned into a devilish smile that she wore well. So well that I bucked a couple of times to get the rodeo started already.
Re-gripping her thighs, I held on while she set the pace. Slow and hard to begin with, working us both up into a pace both fast and punishing. I thrust my hips high to meet each of her movements, and the moment she reached between her legs, the sensory overload was almost too much to handle.
Her gasps, the vice tightening around my erection, her breasts bouncing with each impact, the strain of her leg muscles under my hands, the penetration, and now, her goddamn touching herself.
“Christ, darlin’, you either need to hurry up or let me pull out because I can’t take much more of this.” I grunted, coming dangerously close to the end of my tether.
Louisiana arched back, gifting yet cursing me to a full, unashamed frontal while being thoroughly fucked.
Grandmas, grandmas, grandmas, I chanted in my head in a desperate effort to keep myself under control. It worked for a few seconds before her insides squeezed harder and began to pulse around me. The rush hit me out of nowhere, so intense it left me seeing stars and growling incoherently as I came. I gritted my teeth against Louisiana’s spasms as her body followed suit, leaving her panting and quaking against my thighs as we both rode out the high.
“Holy shit,” she breathed.
“Holy shit is right. I gotta let you take control more often,” I murmured while scrubbing a hand down my face.
“Na-ah, that hair pull… that I could get used to.”
I grinned up at her and tweaked her nipple. “Just wait until I get you on all fours, darlin’.”
Louisiana laid a slap on my stomach and laughed when I flinched. She lit the night sky and had me seeing stars. They shone in her eyes the same way happiness danced in her laughter. And fuck me, I was falling for her faster than a comet slicing across the Montana horizon.
“You’re the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen,” I whispered.
All the sated bliss halted, and the air turned thick. Louisiana gazed down at me while lazily grazing her fingers along the side of my abdomen.
“I think you’re blind.”
I scoffed and snagged her hand to stop the tickle. “Well, if I become blind tomorrow, the memory of you bouncing on my dick is one helluva last vision.”
Louisiana covered her scandalized laughter as her cheeks blushed darker.
“Who are you and what have you done with Brandon the gentleman?”
“Oh, he’s in there, darlin’, but back downstairs waiting to have a proper dinner with you.”
“Well, dinner will need to wait.” She bent forward until her breasts brushed my chest. “I haven’t finished with dirty Brandon yet.”
I put in a little effort to rise onto one elbow and flip us over. “Your time in charge is up. Don’t move,” I ordered.
Standing to sort myself out, I felt her gaze on me as I tugged on my boxers. Throwing another warning over my shoulder, I legged it to the bathroom to clean up—paranoid after leaving the evidence on the floor last time for Jake to bust in and see.
When I got back to my bedroom, Louisiana had moved—just the right amount to kneel on the bed in wait.
Chapter 24
Brandon
My momma always told me to count my blessings when I had them, because things could change in a heartbeat.
Sure enough, days later, I received a phone call that was ominous from the start. I didn’t get calls from the sheriff’s office unless it was important, and he sure as hell didn’t make a habit of calling during meal times.
I excused myself from the lunch table and strode outside while glaring at my phone.
“Nash,” I answered in a gruff tone.
“Brandon,” the sheriff replied, then cleared this throat. “Are you sitting down?”
I lowered myself onto the swinging porch seat. “Am now. Is there some kind of issue?”
“Yes, there is.”
My heart lurched and beads of sweat sprung along my upper lip. I wasn’t ready to lose Louisiana when we’d just figured things out.
“I don’t understand, Louisiana has-”
“It ain’t about Miss Carlyle,” Wilson cut in. “Not directly, anyway.”
While some of the tension eased from my chest, the sense of dread remained. “Okay, I’m listening…” I said slowly.
The good sheriff cleared his throat. “There is no easy way to say this, Brandon, so I’ll cut straight to it. I had Miss Anderson in my office this morning.”
The blood in my veins chilled.
“She’s going after you, Brandon. You and your program. She’s up in arms about the safety of the local folk and has raised a petition to get the parolee program shut down.”
I spluttered while a million questions swamped my head. “What? Why?”
He hesitated. “It seems that she and Miss Carlyle had some kind of altercation recently…”
“Bullshit! Jolene verbally attacked Louisiana when she didn’t get what she wanted. She instigated the conflict.”
His voice piqued in interest. “You were there when it happened?”
Fuck. “No, I wasn’t. But I saw the aftermath. Why are you believing Jolene when you haven’t even asked for Louisiana’s side of the story?”
“It was an offhand comment by Miss Anderson, not an official allegation against Miss Carlyle, so at this stage there is no need to take her statement.” The sheriff paused briefly. “Brandon, I know this is a hard situation for you. There is a lot at stake and a lot of rumors flying around. But I wanted you to hear it from me instead of through the gossip chain.”
“If she wasn’t making an official allegation, why did Jolene meet with you?”
Something wasn’t adding up, and I was suspicious.
“She wanted me to sign it.”
“The hell?” I yelled.
“Calm the hell down, Nash. I told her that there was no way I was signing that document when I saw first-hand all the good to come out of your ranch. Rest assured, I’m on your side with this.”
“Thank you,” I murmured, trying to get my head around the bombshell.
I couldn’t believe Jolene would be so spiteful. She had thrown her fair share of tantrums over the years, but never had she come at me from a legal angle.
“What am I meant to do with this information?” I asked.
Wilson seemed to take a drink. “Nothin’, unless Miss Anderson gets enough signatures to make this a real issue.”
“I’m going to fight it,” I declared vehemently. There was n
o way I was letting her destroy everything I worked my ass off for.
“As expected. She’s already zealously collecting signatures, so I’d say this will all come to a head rather quickly.”
Sighing, I ran a hand over my mouth and chin, pissed that this drama added to the bullshit I didn’t have time for. “Thanks for letting me know, sheriff.”
“Let’s hope it comes to nothing.”
I hummed. “Keep me updated.”
“Will do.”
He ended the call, leaving me stewing about the drama. I stood and leaned my elbows on the porch railing. Scrubbing both hands over my face did little to alleviate the turmoil that stole my appetite.
I didn’t think Jolene would ever stoop so low. I already knew of her blatant dislike for the parolees I had out here; she was one of the ones against the program when I launched it, but damn, she really kicked me for six. A tiny part of me wondered if this was her way of trying to drive a wedge between me and Louisiana. She’d always been the jealous type.
“Boss?”
My head snapped up.
“All good?” Jake asked.
I snorted. “Not really.”
He approached and leaned his ass against the railing, crossed his arms over his chest, and waited for me to elaborate.
“Where’s Lou?” I murmured.
Jake’s eyes narrowed. “Inside, making hot drinks. Why?”
“The sheriff called,” I drawled, and Jake shifted. “Long story short, Jolene’s pushing a petition to get this place shut down.”
His eyes immediately narrowed. “The ranch, or the program?”
“The program.” I scrubbed a hand through my hair. “I can’t fucking believe it, Jake. I mean, what the fuck?”
“Why?” he asked, causing me to give him a blank look.
“Why the petition?” he clarified.
“Your guess is as good as mine, but I really think it’s got a lot to do with Louisiana bein’ here.”
“What makes you think that?”
My chest spasmed just thinking about how upset Lou had been after the dance. Her run-in with Jolene had shattered parts of her soul, and I was thankful that I’d been able to put a couple of pieces back together.
I looked Jake dead in his eye and gave him the explanation I promised on Sunday afternoon.
“Jolene was spittin’ tacks at Lou all night at the dance, then when Lou went inside for the bathroom, Jolene apparently bailed her up and spun her usual vile shit. Basically, insinuated she’s our whore and wasn’t fit to be a mother.”
Jake straightened and sucked in a sharp inhale. “How did she know about Ollie?”
“She doesn’t. It was a poison-laced comment designed to hurt. Unintentional or not, it landed right on Lou’s sorest spot.”
He pursed his lips and nodded, processing my words in his own time. “So, where does the petition come into it?”
I shrugged. “My guess is that she didn’t like the attention I was paying to Lou and decided to get rid of the cause by fighting everything we’ve fought so hard to accomplish.”
Anger rolled off Jake in waves, heightening my simmering outrage, pushing it closer to the surface.
“I won’t let that happen,” he stated.
“Neither will I. But most of all, I don’t want to lose Lou.”
A wavering voice came from behind the house screen door. “Why would you lose me?”
Chapter 25
Louisiana
I shook my head slowly as Brandon explained the situation. Disbelief left me lost for words.
And the blame? That landed squarely on my shoulders and bore down. It was heavy enough to buckle my knees. It created the same hollowness inside as when I was found guilty and slapped with a jail sentence.
I killed everything good in my life simply from being around it, and I couldn’t let Brandon’s entire life crumble around him. I wouldn’t let it.
“Call the sheriff for me,” I murmured numbly.
“What? Why?” Brandon exclaimed.
Tears burned in my eyes as I forced words off my tongue. “Call him and tell him I want to go back. I’m removing myself from the program.”
“Like hell you are!” Brandon shouted. “Over my dead body! No. Just, no.”
Jake snapped upright from where he leaned against the porch rail. “I’m with Bran on this; you’re not going back. Not under these circumstances.”
I divided bewildered glances between them. “Don’t you two get it? I’m the reason she’s doing this. It’s simple; remove me, and you remove the problem.”
“People like Jolene are never going to go away, darlin’, and I won’t let her bully you into going back. You’re so close to the end of your sentence and I’m not calling the sheriff for you.”
“You have to!” I urged, my voice turning shrill as the ache in my chest increased.
“I don’t and I won’t,” Brandon growled, his face reddened with anger like I’d never seen before.
We both knew what was at stake, and unfortunately for us, it wasn’t just the logistics of my parole that caused this heartache.
Fury and frustration coiled throughout Brandon’s shoulders. His jaw ticked with the same agitation burning in his eyes, showing a foreign side of him I hadn’t encountered before. One that he kept suppressed until becoming a man cornered and forced to fight his way out.
I barely held back the tears. “Well, what do we do?”
There was so much at stake and my already heightened emotions were made so much worse from Brandon’s stricken expression. It had me shaking my head and reinventing my resolve.
“I can’t mess this up for you!” Thoughts of Ollie snapped into focus, and I blanched. “We can’t be your charity case, Brandon. Not when all of this-” I swung my arm wide. “All of this good could be taken away. I’d be selfish to let that happen—to take away someone else’s second-chance.”
Jake stiffened in my peripheral vision, and I didn’t need to look to know he was cutting his attention back and forth between me and Brandon. My entire body vibrated with anxiety, so debilitating it stole my breath.
“You’re not my charity case,” Brandon boomed. Despite being a hair under six feet, he seemed like ten thanks to the intoxicating combination of outrage and passion.
“You don’t get it,” I exclaimed. “The only one that looks out for me, is me. The only one who can love Ollie so much their entire body aches is me. Not you. Not the system. Me!”
Brandon’s entire stance radiated fury, finally showing me the fire he normally controlled so well. He prowled forward as Jake pushed off the railing and took a cautious step between us. My eyes briefly cut to his, and during that split second, I saw his unease reflected back at me. He stood poised to intervene, and knowing that Jake was on edge sent prickles of unease down my spine.
Brandon flung his arms out wide instead of reaching for me. “This means nothing without you. I want you here with me, both of you, because, because… I love you,” he hissed on a forced exhale.
Shock bounced between the three of us, all equally taken off-guard by the admission. I gaped and wide-eyed blinked at Brandon, while Jake faded back a few paces to give us space. Brandon pulled at the back of his neck while tipping his head to the porch ceiling.
“Brandon-”
“I need some space,” he snapped in a low tone that made pain burst through my heart.
“Brandon…” I started again, not knowing what to say. Not that he would stop to listen, anyway.
I watched him stride to the barn through the tear-clouded vision. A sharp whistle cut through the air as Jake appeared at my side.
“He’s goin’ riding.”
I snorted and dashed my eyes clear. “Escaping, more like.”
“Processing, Louisiana. Give the guy a break. He’s just been told that what he’s worked tirelessly for over the last five years is now in jeopardy. A man’s gonna need a little time after that.”
Guilt immediately filtered through me
. Jake was right. I’d easily become swept up in making this about me without seeing the bigger picture.
“Sorry…” I murmured.
Jake shook off my apology and leaned his forearms against the railing. I mimicked his stance, both of us looking out over the yard.
“Bran’s loyal to the bone, jailbird. And let me tell you that once he sets his mind to something, there ain’t no changing it.”
“I feel like I make his stress worse,” I whispered.
A rolling chuckle came from beside me. “Truthfully, Bran doesn’t easily get worked up. I’ve only seen it a handful of times, but it means he’s already made his decision and he’s all in.”
I studied Jake’s dark-brown eyes. “All in?”
He nodded. “The program. You. Ollie…”
I stared without replying until Jake’s attention returned to the barn. As if on cue, Brandon and Red galloped from the open doors on thundering hooves, spitting gravel and dust. They rounded the yard and tore down the dirt road that led to the far meadows. Seeing Brandon ride like the wind was a sight to behold. It made my breath still and created butterflies in my stomach.
Jake’s hand landed on my shoulder, making me jump. “That look in your eyes right now, Louisiana? Bran has the same, and that’s why he won’t be walkin’ away.”
With a double-pat, Jake ambled back into the house long enough to grab his hat and tug on his boots. He deftly jogged down the porch steps and rounded the house in the direction he was working this morning.
The wind deflated from my sails, draining my posture, and weighing in my chest.
Good men like Brandon weren’t made for girls like me, but here I was, head over heels for him, in complete denial over him loving me back.
As realization of my stupidity hit home, I hurried to pull my boots on.
I had confessions of my own to make, a future to pave, and a man to find.
Chapter 26
Brandon
