by Kit Rocha
It was clear the man didn't approve of him, only Mitch wasn't sure if there was more to it than that. He fought the shot of jealousy that struck as he thought of all the time Nick got to spend with Anna.
He needed a distraction. He needed her warmth. Tonight? They were going to work on her list.
"Travis is out of town. He's helping his brother Daniel drive a load of furniture to Banff this weekend, so you won't even see your cousin."
She relaxed, facing the front window again as the winter scenery flew past. "Nice to have new people settling into the area."
"Cassidy is a rock. I enjoyed the time he worked with us in the garage before he got on with the Coleman ranch. And Ashley is..." He couldn't stop his lips from twisting into a smile.
Anna tapped her elbow against his side. "Guys turn into such hound dogs around her. Go on. You're allowed to say it. She's hot."
"She's a firecracker, but she's also very taken. By two guys." He squeezed her thigh. "And I've got my own flamethrower right here."
Anna winked. "Good recovery, but it doesn't change things. I know what I've heard about Ashley. The woman has a mind of her own when it comes to being sexually liberated. I think she's what people call a free spirit."
He debated how much to tell Anna, but full disclosure seemed the safest plan. "I talked to Cass about one of the things on your fantasy list," he confessed.
He glanced sideways in time to see her cheeks bloom crimson. "Great. Do I have to guess which one?"
"I think you can figure it out. But we don't have to do anything," he assured her. "Only if you're comfortable, Cass is onboard."
Anna paused. "You said Cassidy and Ashley would be home."
Mitch nodded slowly. "Well, Cassidy obviously had to ask what his partners thought of the proposal. Travis didn't mind but had to be out of the picture, but Ashley..."
"Go on."
"Ashley thought it sounded damn hot and insisted she wanted to be there as well."
"Oh, jeez."
Mitch pulled over to the side of the road so he could cup her chin in his hand and look her in the eye. "Nothing happens you don't want to, but Ashley's right. It's fucking hot to consider watching Ashley and Cassidy fool around. They think watching us would be hot as well. That's it. Nothing more."
"Watching only? No touching?" Anna clarified before rolling her eyes. "God, I can't believe I asked that. I feel like a deviant."
"Bullshit--you're not being a deviant to enjoy life. We're not proposing a free-for-all or a gangbang between people who don't give a shit about anything other than getting their own rocks off. We're two adults who know what we like. They're two adults with a consenting third partner. They don't want to break the commitment they've made to each other, but we all agreed watching is fine. It's like...live-action porn in a safe place, and no one but us will ever know."
Anna still hesitated. "It sounds so contrived now that we've had to plan it out."
"I figured if I didn't plan it you'd put my balls in a vise."
She snorted. He was probably right.
Mitch leaned in and pressed his lips to hers. A slow, thorough kiss that started soft, then advanced rapidly into lots of tongue and heavy breathing. He was gratified to feel the knot of tension in her shoulders melting away as heat rose between them.
Anna pulled back reluctantly. "Stop it. We're going to get a citation for public indecency."
Mitch winked, then put the truck back in gear and continued down the road. "Think of it this way. The possibility is there. If nothing happens, that's fine. We'll shoot the bull for a while, have a few laughs--there's no agenda, Anna. Just a night out with a couple friends."
"A couple friends we might get naked in front of."
A shiver shook her, and Mitch waited to see if she'd say anything else. Admit to anything else. He was pretty sure the idea turned her on damn hard, but he wasn't going to push.
If she decided they call the whole thing off, he'd be fine with that as well.
Cassidy met them at the front door. The trio had moved into the old Peter's house on the Six Pack land--one of the earliest homesteads in the Rocky Mountain House area, and the origin of the Coleman ranch. The house was in the process of renovations, but there was still plenty of room to join Cassidy on the front porch.
His blond hair stuck up every which way as if he'd recently gotten out of the shower. "Come on in and ignore the mess. I'm running late, and Ashley is even later."
Anna hesitated in the doorway. "You want us to come back some other time?"
Cassidy shook his head, briefly shaking hands with Mitch. "Nah. I just got caught out in the fields later than usual. I'm still learning the lay of the land. Your cousin Matt and I were about fifteen miles farther north than I expected, chasing down some runaway horses."
"And Ashley?" Mitch asked, stepping behind Anna and stroking the back of her neck softly with his fingertips.
A full-out grin escaped Cassidy. "She's in her studio getting projects ready for her rescheduled art show. If we didn't haul her out of there occasionally, she'd forget to eat, sleep or do anything human until she's done."
They all laughed. Anna leaned into Mitch, a small but subtle shift. "Nice that she enjoys what she's doing so much."
Cassidy grabbed a coat off the wall hooks and shrugged it on. "Come on, I'll show you the studio. You can take a peek, and after we can pull her away from her work."
"She won't mind?" Mitch asked.
"Nope. Ashley likes an audience."
Mitch held back his snort of laughter as he exchanged glances with Anna. She looked about ready to burst, but she slipped her fingers into his and they followed Cassidy around the back of the house to a two-storey old barn.
"The house renovations aren't done because me and Travis fixed this up first," Cassidy explained as he pushed open the door, closing it quickly after them to block out the icy December air. The scent of paint and turpentine hung around them, along with the fresher aroma of cedar boards and pine boughs. A heavy beat echoed off the walls, music playing loudly from somewhere over their heads.
The level they were on held a small workspace with a sink along one wall and a two-burner stovetop, but mostly it seemed to be storage. Rows and rows of shelving, some covered with boxes, others still empty. Light poured down from above, showcasing the stairs leading to the second level. Cassidy took the steps two at a time as he moved ahead of them. "Hey, Ash, you got company," he shouted.
"...chills. Oh, baby, ooooohhhh..."
Mitch squeezed Anna's hand. "She sings too."
"Stop it." Anna laughed as she tugged him up the stairs, warm air pouring over them from a ceiling mounted heater.
They paused at the top of the landing, and Anna was struck with how well the guys had designed the workspace. Unless someone stood on one of the distant hills behind the shop and used binoculars, the second-storey space was a nearly perfect private oasis.
The upper floor had no interior walls, only a wide-open space from ceiling to peaked roof. Fading sunlight shone in the exterior windows that faced the back fields of the Coleman property, but most of the brightness at this time of day came from a bank of suspended ceiling lights strategically placed to spotlight Ashley's main work area.
The artist in question stood behind an oversized canvas, pretty much hidden from view, but she was audible, singing at the top of her lungs along with the music she had cranked to eleven.
"...oh, yeah, do it. Do me, baby..."
Cassidy twisted down the volume, and Ashley's blonde head suddenly appeared, followed by the rest of her. Anna's hand tightened in Mitch's as they realized Ashley was dressed in her underwear and nothing else.
"Hey, lover." Ashley put down her paintbrush and stepped across the sturdy wood floorboards, her hand held out. "Perfect timing. Take off your clothes."
Cassidy cleared his throat, grabbing a robe from where it was draped over the back of a nearby chair. "Ash, we have guests, remember?"
She blinked hard,
as if pulling herself back from some other place, then Ashley smiled sweetly at them. "Hey, guys. Sorry, I need to borrow Cassidy for about five minutes. I can't figure out what I've done wrong here. Come see."
She slipped her arms into the robe absentmindedly as Cassidy helped her. Mitch found her attractive, but he was far more interested in seeing Anna get naked, her curves the ones he craved.
Still, it was an interesting start to what could be a very interesting evening. Mitch let Anna lead him to where Cassidy and Ashley waited.
The well-lit studio made Anna feel as if she were standing under a spotlight. Not only exposed on the outside but in, as if the shadows in her character were also being peered into. No hiding anywhere.
She'd asked for this evening, and Mitch had delivered--if she was brave enough to go along for the ride.
"Ash," Cassidy protested, his hands covering his girlfriend's.
"Oh, come on." Ashley tugged his T-shirt free from his pants, her fingers going for the button on his jeans. "I don't have the right anatomy to check in the mirror. I tried, but I need dude muscles."
"Is that why you were painting in your underwear?" Cassidy asked, stepping back from her.
"Yes. Pleeeease..." she wheedled.
He offered an apologetic shrug to Anna and Mitch. "You mind?"
Anna shook her head, then stepped closer to examine Ashley's painting. "What's the problem? Not that I can help--I'm not artsy."
"This line here." Ashley pointed to the painting. "See? I got his chest right, I know I have, but that Adonis muscle...I'm not positive how much it crunches when he's picking up a saddle."
The partially finished portrait on the canvas was going to be gorgeous. In the foreground was a cowboy, his horse waiting behind him to be saddled, fence rails and rolling foothills as a backdrop.
"Well, I don't usually pick up saddles when I'm half-naked, so that's one problem you've got off the bat," Cassidy teased.
Ashley stuck out her tongue. "Bend over and reach for the floor."
"Pretend you dropped the soap," Mitch drawled, and Cassidy burst out laughing, swinging a finger in Mitch's direction.
"Bad boys." Ashley pouted. "I'm trying to make art, and you're getting dirty."
"You like dirty," Cassidy commented as he obediently got back into position, his work-hardened body pretty damn easy on the eyes. "Welcome to the nuthouse, Anna. Aren't you glad you came?"
Mitch curled himself around her so he could whisper in her ear. "You'll be even gladder once you come, right?"
Her cheeks flushed.
Watching. Being watched. Right now she couldn't decide which thought was causing goose bumps to rise over her entire body. Making her nipples pebble without a direct touch.
Ashley drew some firm pencil lines on the canvas, rubbing with her fingertips to add shadows. "Perfect."
"Thank you." Cassidy straightened up and closed in on her. "Now are you done?"
The short pause while he kissed her gave enough time for Mitch to sneak his hand over Anna's belly, thumb teasing in circles as they watched Ashley twine her fingers into Cassidy's hair and thoroughly get into the kiss.
Mitch stood at her back, a solid mass of man that she was itching to touch all over. When he slipped his hand under her shirt so he was rubbing bare skin, she moaned softly.
His touch was addictive.
Ashley pulled back from Cassidy, smiling contentedly at him before turning toward her guests. "There's one more thing..." She spoke quietly. "And feel free to say no, but, Mitch? You've got tattoos."
He gasped in shock. "Oh my God, really?"
Anna elbowed him, and he laughed as she muttered, "Behave."
Ashley stepped closer. "I'm designing a tattoo for a friend. I've never done that before, and I want to make sure I account for how curvature might affect what I draw. You mind?"
There was heat in his eyes as he glanced at Anna. Not for permission, per se, more as a warning. "I'll take off mine if you take off yours."
The game changed. All the oxygen sucked out of the room.
Anna focused on Mitch alone, staring into his dark eyes as he took a leisurely perusal of her from top to bottom. "You daring me, Thompson?"
"Since when does a Coleman need to be dared to get dirty?"
She stepped closer, deliberately ignoring Ashley and Cassidy. Acutely aware they were there. She could still see them in her peripheral vision. Cassidy moved to the sidewall, and the bright lights shining on them dimmed to almost nothing.
Mitch pulled off his T-shirt, dropping it over the back of the wooden chair beside him. Muscles flexed as he stretched lazily, chest muscles bulging, biceps molding into rocks. The tattoos curling and extending with his motions like living creatures.
Anna planted her feet on either side of his, close enough their body heat meshed. "You want skin? You got it."
She caught the bottom of her shirt and lifted it without bothering to undo the buttons. The fabric teased her skin as it rose, a soft brush of cotton that raced up her spine like fingers.
Only right now no one was touching her. Just Mitch's dark gaze eating her up.
And a low hum of approval from where Ashley and Cassidy stood.
The sound broke the spell Anna had been weaving around herself. Made it impossible to pretend she and Mitch were alone. That was fine, though, because as Mitch trailed his fingers down her collarbone, the sensation that followed was that much more because they weren't alone.
Her awareness was cranked to maximum. Not only in how she responded to Mitch pressing his full palm around her ribs, fingers spread wide as he caressed her back. Not only the sounds in the air--their breathing becoming more rapid, small noises of pleasure escaping from both groups. Her blood pounded through her veins--she felt every pulse, felt her pussy getting wetter in anticipation of being taken.
Alive, like she'd never been before.
Mitch thumbed her bra hooks open, pressing a kiss to her shoulder as he skimmed the thin straps down. He eased back far enough for the cups to fall away, and she was naked from the waist up, his hands cupping the full globes of her breasts. The aching need for him only increased, and he winked, only a second, and put his lips to her skin.
Kisses at first then his tongue, tracing a line down her neck before heading lower. He paused only enough to grab a wooden chair and drop into it, pulling her into his lap and trapping her hips in position over the thick length of his engorged cock.
That controlling hand had returned to her lower back. Holding her in place as he slid his other hand up to lightly collar her throat.
The delicate pressure he exerted pushed her into an arch, and the next thing she knew he'd wrapped his lips around her nipple. Wet heat, the sharp bite of his teeth. Anna shuddered hard enough the chair under them skittered on the hardwood floor.
"So damn beautiful," Mitch whispered. "Your skin is flushing, body softening. If I put my fingers into you right now, I bet you'd drench me."
"Do it." Anna deliberately opened her eyes and curled upright, reaching for her button and wiggling backward off his lap.
Mitch grinned. "Eager, are you?"
She was about to explode, and he was asking stupid questions. "You want me to do it myself?"
Instant lust ripped over his expression, and Anna found herself twirled then pinned to his hard body. The rough stubble on his cheek scratched her cheek and shoulder as he leaned them together. "There's no rush. Ashley wants to see my tats. Let's give her a clean canvas to contrast them against."
Again, one of his hands went up, the other down. Both barely touching her, but both making the minute hairs on her skin stand straight on end. His top arm cradled her torso, his wide-spread fingers cupping her breast, thumb teasing back and forth over her nipple.
With his other hand, he finished what she'd started. Unzipped her pants then shoved them down far enough to reveal her panties.
He was right--she was soaking wet already, and only getting wetter the longer he delayed.
The bold lines of his tattoos curled around his arms like he was curled around her, the flames against her pale skin making it appear she was the one on fire.
She was. Inside and out. An incinerator had been lit in her belly that was melting away all restraint and inhibitions. Anna took a deep breath then peeked under her lashes toward Cassidy and Ashley's corner.
The two of them were tangled together as well. Ashley had lost the robe, and not only was Cassidy's chest still bare, his pants were open. Ashley had his cock in her hand and was stroking him.
But both of them were watching Mitch and Anna with an unwavering focus.
Anna wasn't sure what she'd expected to feel, knowing for certain Mitch's caresses were being witnessed. As he slid his fingers into her panties and Ashley's gaze followed, Anna's only response was to open her legs as wide as her half-dropped pants would allow.
There should have been some embarrassment, maybe, to accompany the illicit thrill. But with Cassidy's gaze fixed on her chest, and Mitch rocking his cock against her lower back, she was overwhelmed with that internal fire. Heat licking through her like she'd gone molten inside.
Mitch parted her folds. "I'm going to fingerfuck you. Then once you've had an orgasm or two, I'll bend you over this chair and fuck you for real."
"Yes." Anna clutched his wrist as he thrust into her. She was wet, so he didn't hold back. Thick fingers shoved deep, and she dropped her head back on his shoulder and moaned as he pulled out so slowly she felt every second with an intensity that rocked her.
Mitch released her for long enough to shove her pants to the floor, setting his hands on her hips and ripping the edge of her panties apart. Then he was back, her legs kicked farther apart, her body arching as he drew her upright and set his hands back on her.
This time when he drove his fingers in and started fucking her, he didn't stop. Not until she was shaking, cries escaping her lips. Through half-closed eyes she focused across the room on Cassidy and Ashley. He had Ashley bent over his arm, his cock buried in her pussy as they pulsed together. Erotic to watch, intoxicating.
