by Becca Van
“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” he snapped out, glaring at her.
“I was just having a drink. What does it look like I was doing?”
“Don’t you get sassy with me, little girl, or I’ll put you over my knee and smack your ass.”
“I beg your pardon?” Felicity asked in her most haughty tone.
“You heard me, Felicity. Don’t try my patience any more than you already have. Now, what are you doing in town?”
“I had to get some tampons from the pharmacy, Sheriff, not that it’s any of your business what I do.”
“Now, that’s where you’re wrong. You are my business. Did you have the courtesy to let Tom or Billy know where you were going or how long you would be? I’d think with that bastard still missing, you’d want people to know where you are in case he comes after you again.”
“I let Nanette know where I was going. I can’t believe you. What gives you the right to order me around? I’ve never had to answer to anyone before, and I’m not going to start now.” Felicity hissed through clenched teeth.
“That’s where you’re wrong, Felicity. Everything you do is my, Tom’s, and Billy’s business. You agreed to abide by the rules when you signed that contract, sweetheart. Next time you want or need to go anywhere, you let one of us know. It’s time to go back home. And since I’ve finished my shift, you’re coming with me,” Luke commanded. He manacled his hand around her wrist, pulled her up with him, without hurting her, dropped a few bills on the table, and led her out to his truck.
Felicity didn’t try to dig her heels in since she was no match for such a strong, tall, forceful man. She loved the feel of his hands on her and wondered what she was thinking. How could she lust after three men at once? He had her strapped into the front seat of his truck before she could protest.
“Hey. What about my car? How am I going to get it back to the ranch?” Felicity whined as she watched her car disappear.
“Jack and one of the hands will get it later,” Luke replied.
Felicity was so angry with his high-handed tactics she crossed her arms over her chest and stared out the passenger-side window, refusing to speak.
When Luke pulled the car up near the ranch house, Felicity got out of his truck, slammed the door, and ran inside. She didn’t get very far. Tom and Billy must have heard them arrive. They were waiting inside the back door when she stormed in. Much to Felicity’s dismay, Tom picked her up, slung her over his shoulder, and carried her into the study. He gently lowered her to the sofa, moved back away from her, and stood with him arms folded across his chest. Billy was leaning on the desk, and Luke entered the room a few moments later. They stood staring at her, anger evident in their eyes and their offensive stances. Their arms were crossed over their chests, their hips thrust forward, and they were all watching her with predatory intent.
“Who the fuck do you three think you are? What gives you the right to tell me what I can and can’t do?” Felicity asked in a loud, indignant voice. She watched cautiously as Tom turned to his desk, opened a drawer, pulled a paper out, and stalked toward her.
“Felicity, did you even stop to think that James is still on the loose?” Tom asked quietly. “We have no idea where he is. He could have come after you in town. Don’t you realize we’re only trying to keep you safe? What were you doing in town?”
“I needed to buy a few things,” Felicity replied, lowering her eyes from the three men.
“What did you need so desperately that you couldn’t come and tell Billy or me where you were going?” Tom asked.
Felicity didn’t answer the question or even acknowledge the three men in the room. She didn’t want them all knowing what she had gone to town to buy, even though it had just been an excuse to get out for a while. It was bad enough she had already blurted it out to Luke, trying to embarrass him, but instead ending up embarrassing herself in the process.
Tom wasn’t going to let her get away without answering though. He moved to the sofa, sat down beside her, and gently took her chin between his thumb and finger, turning her head toward him. “Answer the question, Lis, or I’ll put you over my knee.”
“My name isn’t Lis. It’s Felicity. I needed some more tampons, all right? Are you happy now that you’ve humiliated me?”
“It was never my intention to humiliate you, Lis. I just need to know you’re safe, since James hasn’t been caught yet. We care about you and your welfare, and while you are on this ranch you will abide by our rules.”
“I’m not a child. I’ve been looking after myself for four years. I don’t need anyone watching out for me.”
“I don’t care. While you’re on my ranch, you are under our protection. Now, I’m sure Nanette is wondering where we are. Dinner was ready about ten minutes ago. Come on, let’s go eat,” Tom stated as he rose to his feet. He held out his hand to Felicity, waiting to pull her to her feet.
“I’m not hungry.”
“If you’re not acting like a child, then why are you sulking?” Luke asked as he moved toward her.
Felicity watched him move with predatory grace. She felt her body warming from the inside out as he moved toward her. He gently tugged on her ponytail, tilting her head up to meet his sinful brown eyes. “You will go into that dining room and eat what Nanette has prepared. You will hurt her feelings if you don’t.”
“Okay,” Felicity sighed, ignoring the three men and stomping to the dining room.
* * * *
“She is so fucking sexy. I can’t wait to make her ours,” Billy stated. Luke nearly laughed when he saw his friend licking his lips.
“I know, bro, but it looks like we’re gonna have to wait a few more days. You know what women are like when they have their monthly,” Tom stated.
Luke knew his two friends were looking forward to punishing their little woman for leaving the ranch without letting them know she was leaving or taking anyone with her as much as he was. Their brand of punishment would have left the four of them totally satisfied, but now he had to put their plans on the back burner. He followed their woman into the dining room.
Luke’s eyes immediately landed on Felicity. She was sitting at the table in between Jack and one of the other ranch hands, Spencer. He didn’t like the fact she was not near him, Tom, or Billy, but he didn’t want to make a scene, which he knew would end up in another argument with their woman. He watched her talking to Jack and felt a stab of jealousy at their easy camaraderie. He wanted to be able to talk to her and have her conversing with him in such an easy manner. He took a seat across from her, watching as she kept her eyes averted from him, Tom, and Billy. Yep, she was sulking, and it looked like she was going to continue giving them the cold shoulder. They couldn’t let her get away with that. Luke decided it was time to start training their woman to let her know that she was theirs, and only theirs. They didn’t have to fuck her. They could bring her pleasure without even penetrating her. He turned his head to Tom and Billy. Since the three of them had practically grown up together, they often knew what the other was thinking. Tom gave a barely perceptible nod, letting him know he was in accordance with him.
Luke knew Tom was getting mighty pissed off at being ignored. He and his friends hated it when a woman used the cold-shoulder, silent treatment. He’d rather have a rip-roaring argument than be totally ignored because he knew that making up would be so sweet. Since he was still getting to know their little woman and wanted to know how she would react to being goaded, he decided that he, Tom, and Billy should begin their courting in earnest. Since Tom was sitting too far away to be able to touch Felicity and Billy had a ranch hand between him and Felicity, he knew he was the only one able to touch her without anyone else knowing. He nodded to Tom, letting him know the game was on.
Chapter Four
Felicity froze in her seat when she felt a large socked foot sliding up her calf. She flinched, trying to keep her cheeks from heating with embarrassment. Jack turned to look at her curiously and, when he saw
her heated cheeks, must have thought she wasn’t feeling well.
“Are you all right, Felicity?”
“Fine,” she squeaked out. She cleared her throat and repeated her answer in a calmer voice. “I’m fine, thanks, Jack.”
“You look a little flushed, sweetheart. Are you sure you’re all right?”
“Yeah, just a little tired, I guess,” Felicity answered. She turned away from Jack and glared at Luke.
Felicity could see Luke was struggling not to smile. She could see the twinkle of amusement in his eyes. She felt him slide his foot a little higher, keeping his eyes on hers the whole time. His foot was now in between her thighs, halfway between her knee and pussy. Felicity gave Luke her best “you’re dead” stare from across the table. She felt him slip his foot up higher until he was covering her pussy with his large appendage. She nearly groaned out loud from sheer pleasure as she felt the moist heat of her cunt being touched through her jeans. She loved being touched by Luke, Tom, and Billy. She was just anxious about being caught by the others. She jumped to her feet and stood glaring at him.
“Are you all right, honey? Can I get you something?” Nanette asked from across the kitchen counter.
“Um, I just wanted to get a glass of water,” Felicity replied, looking to Nan.
“There’s a jug on the table already, honey. There should be glasses, too. Yes, there they are, behind the jug. Luke, pour Felicity some water,” Nanette demanded then returned to cleaning the kitchen.
Felicity reluctantly returned to her chair but didn’t pull herself as close to the table. Hopefully she was thwarting Luke by not moving in so close to him, but he was such a tall man, she knew she didn’t have much chance of keeping him and his foot at bay. Not that she really wanted to. She was fighting the urge to crawl over the table, sit in his lap, and place his big hands on her breast and pussy. She wondered what the hell he thought he was doing. Why was he hitting on her? She looked to Tom and Billy to see if they had been watching. She glared at them as they gave her innocent smiles. Oh yeah, they knew. She wasn’t that ignorant of men. She did read erotic romance novels, after all. Even though she was still a virgin, she knew what went on between men and women. Felicity ate a few mouthfuls of food, not really tasting anything. She was just beginning to relax again when she felt Luke’s foot in her crotch. He hadn’t given her any warning this time. He had gone straight for what he wanted. Felicity jumped to her feet, grabbed her plate, and took it into the kitchen.
“Thanks for dinner, Nanette. I’m sorry I couldn’t do it justice. I’m just not very hungry,” Felicity stated, and then she practically ran for her bedroom.
* * * *
Nan turned to Luke, Tom, and Billy. She stood with her hands on her ample hips, tapping her foot on the floor, and glared at the three men. “What did you do to that poor girl? She ran out of the room as if all the hounds of hell were on her heels.”
“We didn’t do anything,” Tom replied, struggling to keep his amusement from showing.
“And pigs fly backwards. I know you three, and I know what you’re up to. You treat that little girl right. She’s an innocent little thing, and if you hurt her, you’ll be answering to me.”
“Yes, ma’am,” they all replied, lowering their eyes to their plates, continuing their meal.
* * * *
Felicity sighed with relief, the tension in her body easing as she gathered her large sleeping shirt then headed to the shower. When she finished her shower, she dried off and began to dry her hair. Her hair was so long it reached the top of her ass. She loved having long hair. It made her feel feminine while she was working in such a male-dominated industry. She had nearly cut it off once, knowing it would be easier to take care of, not take so long to dry, but to her, it was her only feminine attribute. When she was working, she kept it tied up and out of the way, but when she was alone, she loved the feel of it sliding over her skin. She finished drying her hair, and picked up her favorite body butter. Felicity made sure to moisturize her skin every night after spending all day outside in the elements. She loved the Frangipani scent emanating from her warm skin after she was clean. It was another nightly ritual she loved, that helped to remind herself she was a woman. She spent all her time around men being one of the boys all day, every day. So she loved to pamper herself at night, away from prying eyes.
Felicity had been on her own for so long now, she had no idea how to let anyone else take control. She often dreamed about having a man to lean on, to take care of her so she could relinquish control to him, but she knew that would never happen. She had become too independent. She’d had to. It was either that or not survive the harsh realities of life. She had been on her own for four years, since the age of seventeen. Thinking back over the years with her aunt, she realized she had been self-sufficient for far longer than four years. She never had any hugs or love from her aunt. She didn’t think the woman knew how to show emotion. She had been so cold to her. Maybe she had begrudged having to take care of a child that wasn’t of her own body, but then she had known her aunt was a dried-up spinster. She’d had no friends in her life, and she hadn’t allowed Felicity to bring friends home with her or go and visit friends after school. Felicity had never celebrated a birthday or been given a gift in remembrance of her birth. Her aunt would hand her a card without saying a word, and then she would go about her day. More often than not, it was Felicity who did the cooking and cleaning at her aunt’s house.
She wondered how long her aunt had had a gambling problem. Looking back, she knew it must have been for years. The woman was only ever home in the evenings, expecting Felicity to have a meal on the table when she walked in the door. She couldn’t remember a time before her seventh birthday when she had not been doing most of the housework for her aunt. The day she had turned eight was the day her cooking lessons began. Her aunt had never scolded her for some of the disasters she had cooked, but she knew she had not been happy. It had been there in her eyes and the set of her mouth. Felicity had begun to query herself, why she was such a difficult child to love. She had done everything within her power to please her aunt, but her efforts were wasted. Therefore, she had learned not to become attached to anyone. She began to push her friends away, knowing it was a useless endeavor to have them since she was never allowed over to play or have them over to her aunt’s house.
Felicity sighed as she climbed into bed. At least she had never been bored. She learned to fill in her spare time with books. Her love of reading had kept her sane. Felicity reached over to the bedside table, pulled out the erotic romance she had picked up in town, and settled down to lose herself within the pages.
Felicity was so engrossed in her dream world when she heard the footsteps stop at her bedroom door, she ignored it. She caught movement from the corner of her eye and jerked with surprise to see three men standing in her bedroom, observing her as the door closed behind them.
* * * *
Luke stood watching their woman. She was so enthralled in her book she was unaware of their presence. The cover on the book caught Luke’s attention. He couldn’t hold back his grin of delight as he studied the two men and one woman on the cover of the book. It looked like their woman was into reading about ménages. This was going to make their job of training their woman to accept the loving of three men a lot easier.
Luke wasn’t sure which one of them had made a sound, but Felicity looked up and stared as she saw them standing in her bedroom. She moved like lightning, hiding her book beneath the bed covers as she gaped at them, her mouth hanging open. She quickly snapped her mouth shut, swallowed loudly, and then changed her facial expression to a scowl as he stood watching her.
“What the fuck are you doing in my room? Get out, now,” she said without any emphasis, but Luke could see the desire in her eyes as she ran them over his body. He watched Felicity’s chest rise and fall as her breathing increased. He saw her nipples harden under her shirt, and she wriggled with desire as she stared at them. Their little baby
was turned on.
“No,” Luke replied as he stalked toward her.
“What? What do you want? I think you should leave. Nan could catch you in here.”
“No. Nan’s gone home,” Tom replied.
* * * *
Felicity had a fair idea what was going on, and the heated looks they were giving her as the three men moved to stand at the end of the bed had her squirming with arousal. She was so attracted to the three men. Her breasts felt heavy, and her pussy was beginning to leak out juices. They had teased her with their heated stares and sexy looks. They had touched her every time she walked past them, a hand on her hip, her back, her arm, and even a slight brush of an arm to her breast, if the opportunity arose.
“I knew your hair would be long. You look so sexy, baby,” Tom said then licked his lips.
“Oh, my God,” Felicity squeaked. “What do you want?” Felicity asked, trying to appear belligerent to hide her arousal, and crossed her arms over her breasts.
“You,” Luke replied heatedly.
“What? No, you don’t want me. Besides you can’t,” Felicity stated, licking her lips.
“Oh, you’re killing me, honey,” Luke groaned out.
Felicity jerked as they moved forward together. Luke and Tom walked to either side of the bed, and Billy began to crawl up the mattress. She pushed the covers back, her feet on the floor, not wanting to make it easy for the three men. Shit, I’m falling for them. God, I want them so much.
“Then what the hell are you waiting for? Come and get me, big boy,” Felicity goaded as she tried to stand. She never made it to her feet. Luke pounced on her since he was the closest. He took her down to the mattress with him, covering her mouth with his own. He grasped her wrists in his large hands and pulled her arms up above her head. He manacled them in one large hand. He devoured her mouth with his own.
