by Jess Bentley
My lips wrapped around him, I work him in and out of my mouth, gripping the base of his shaft with my hand. With my other hand, I grip his ass, and then I start to work him faster.
“Holy fuck, Jessa,” he groans above me.
His exclamation only makes me want to suck him harder. Show him pleasure that no one else ever has. I swirl my tongue around him force my throat to relax so I can take him farther in. I feel him bump the back of my throat and I revel in the sensation.
His hips begin to move, not hard, but matching my rhythm. I can feel him moving closer and closer to the edge. And I want to taste him.
He curses above me, and then tugs my hair. Just hard enough to get my attention.
I look up at him, and he shakes his head at me and admonishment.
“Not this time, Jessa.” His voice is more growl than normal speech. “Don’t doubt it, I’m going to come in your mouth. But not today. Not our first time.” With that, he steps back.
I release him with an irritated noise, but before I can say anything, he’s lifted me back to my feet and made short work at the rest of my clothes. Then he lays me on the blanket, fierce expression still lighting his gaze.
I’m on fire. Making a man like Trey want me as bad as he does right now has turned me on more than I ever could have imagined in my wildest fantasies. Doing it by taking his cock in my mouth out here in the open air and sunshine is a fantasy I never expected to come true.
Trey gives me a swift kiss, before moving his attention to my breasts. I moan as he sucks on one hard, then he bites my nipple, before licking the pain away.
He looks up at me, gaze so fucking intense that it startles a small moan from me. I close my eyes, embarrassed.
“Open your eyes,” he commands.
Unable to resist, my eyes flutter back open and I do my best to hold his gaze.
“I wanted to take my time. I wanted to worship your body for hours before I let myself come, before I let myself take you. But sweetheart, I’m sorry. I can’t wait this time.” And before I can fully register the meaning of his words, he’s sliding into me, burying himself to the hilt.
“God, yes!” I scream into his shoulder. He fills me up so completely, that the rest of the world ceases to exist. There’s no more blue sky above us, no more birds chirping in the distance. There’s only him, this.
Despite his words, Trey fucks me slowly at first, giving my body a chance to get used to his size. But before long, I’m writhing against him, begging him to take me harder, faster. I need this, I need this tightly controlled man to lose control with me.
And I need it now.
Trey mutters something I can’t make out, but he heeds my words. His thrusts come harder, faster. I can barely keep up. I feel the orgasm, fluttering in the corners of my vision. As if sensing it himself, Trey slips a hand between us, and rubs my clit. Even as he continues to fuck me.
I come hard, my vision exploding with fireworks. My nails dig into his shoulders and I grind myself against him, greedy for every drop of pleasure he can give.
Trey lets out a low groan, and pushes into me once, twice, three times, his pace erratic. Then his whole body shakes as he finds his own release.
A long moment later, I wrap my arms around him and open my eyes. And I realize that somehow, the world didn’t end. The sky is still blue above us.
I’m not sure how long we laid there, my head pressed into Trey’s shoulder as he held me close. But it couldn’t have been more than a half-hour. I think I dozed a bit. I do that a lot now that I’m pregnant.
“We should go see the pasture,” Trey murmurs against my hair. He rubs slow circles on my shoulder.
Moving really doesn’t sound like a good idea. But I wake fully from my doze, and sit up. Before I can go further, Trey sits up next to me and presses a quick kiss on my lips. Then he’s on his feet, searching the grass and blanket for all of our pieces of clothing. We dress quickly, and silently. But surprisingly, the silence doesn’t feel awkward. Not to me, at least.
Together, we fold up the big blanket and then head for the truck. Trey carries the blanket under one arm, and wraps the other around my shoulders while we walk. I place my hand in the small of his back and lean into him. He still smells amazing. Masculine and clean, yet somehow with a touch of the nature around us as well.
I get in the truck while Trey tosses the blanket inside the toolbox and the bed. Then he pulls the truck back out onto the road we were driving down before our very memorable stop.
We drive for less than ten minutes before Trey’s pulling back over again. This time, I actually see cattle. And fencing. Lots of fencing in the distance, too. The cattle and the fence line are a short walk from the truck, but not too far, no matter how weak in the knees I still am. I can make it.
Trey turns off the truck and sit and then sits there moment. He stares at the dash, and I start tapping my foot. I press my hand against my knee and stop tapping. Showing my nervousness isn’t likely to help.
“I’ll take care of you if you get pregnant, Jessa. I want you to know that,” he says. And then he turns to look at me. Excitement, not fear, laces his expression. “I just need you to know that. It would be my pleasure.”
Shock reverberates through me, twisting into an uncomfortable lump in my chest. We didn’t use protection, how could I not have thought about until now? I’d spent every adult year of my life making sure that kind of thing didn’t happen. Is it because I’m already pregnant? Or had I gotten so swept up in Trey that it just hadn’t occurred to me, even to my subconscious?
I just don’t know what to say. I can’t tell him part him I’m pregnant, not now. It just wouldn’t be fair to Clay. It’s only right he knows first.
Finally, I settle for a weak, “Thanks.”
He nods, eyes still on me, before tucking a strand of hair behind my ear. Then he gets out of the truck.
I climb down, too—again, watching for holes—before Trey can make it around the truck to help me. I appreciate his chivalry, I really do. But I can open my own damn door sometimes.
Trey takes my hand in his again—and damn, doesn’t it feel natural—and leads me toward the pasture.
As we approach, it becomes more and more obvious to me that cows are not what I expect.
They are huge.
I slow next to Trey, my eyes widening. I mean, horses are huge, and I’m not afraid of them. Okay, I might be slightly afraid of the horses, but sheesh. The cattle—not only are they big but there are so many of them. They aren’t crowded in the pasture, but they are staying fairly close together. Probably the way the fencing works with holistic herding keeps them closer together.
“Are you all right?” Trey asks.
“Have you uh... noticed how big those things are?” I say, knowing how stupid I must sound to the lifetime rancher.
But he doesn’t laugh at me like I expected him to. Instead, he gives me a gentle smile. “The bull isn’t with the herd. They won’t hurt you. I promise, I’ll be by your side the whole time.”
I’ve known Trey less than a week. His reassurance that he would be next to me shouldn’t make me feel so safe. And yet it does. Warm and fuzzy and ridiculous, because I know that I shouldn’t already feel so close to this man. Let alone, to all four of them.
He takes me by the cows, moving slowly so I can get used to them. To Trey’s credit, they do all seem gentle and tame. They move slowly and don’t seem to be afraid of us at all. They’re actually really kind of cute.
Cows. Steak. Man, I could go for a good steak right now.
Guilt twists my stomach as I pet the cow between her eyes. Looking at that adorable face and all I can think about is steak? I’m going to have to blame the pregnancy for this one.
“Aren’t you just adorable?” I say.
The cow sniffs me, and, discovering no yummies, goes back to grazing.
“I’ll bring you an apple next time,” I promise her. At least when she looks at me, she thinks of food too.
&nb
sp; We continue walking, mostly around the herd rather than directly through it. All of the cows seem relatively docile, but I’m definitely glad that there aren’t any bulls here. A gentle breeze blows around us, bringing with it the smells of the pasture and a surprisingly little smell of manure.
I almost ask Trey about it, but I really don’t want to talk to him about poop. No doubt, the cows have enough room in this pasture that that kind of smell doesn’t build, especially with the way they rotate their pastures with the holistic herding. I’ve never been to the type of commercial farm where the smell is really an issue—like a big dairy farm—but I’d heard horror stories. I’m oh so thankful the Hollister Ranch isn’t that type of ranch. I don’t feel any nausea at the moment, but a whole field of cow poop seems like it could change that pretty quickly.
We make our way around the fence and through an area of dense brush. Luckily, there’s already a path cut through it. I’m not sure if it was done by man or by cow. I open my mouth to ask, then stop when Trey lets out a loud expletive.
We reach the end of the brush patch, and I bump into his back when he stops unexpectedly.
“What’s wrong?” I ask. I peek around him to see if I can tell what the problem is, but all I see is more fence.
“This,” he says, striding forward. I have to jog behind him for a few seconds to keep up. The man has some long legs.
I look at where he’s pointing when we stop, and suddenly it’s obvious even to me what’s wrong. The fence is horribly damaged—enough so it wouldn’t take much for cow to walk through the hole. I glance at three cows who are nearest. They continue to calmly graze. Apparently, they aren’t in any hurry to escape.
“Did they do that?” I ask, doubt obvious in my tone. The cows are definitely big enough to have caused some damage—if they really wanted to. But I just couldn’t see them going that ballistic.
“They did not.” Rage makes his voice shake, and he grabs piece of the wire and holds it up for me to see. “This has been cut. Someone is either trying to let our cows loose, steal them. Or they’re just fucking with us. Every man I have to send out to look for a missing head is one I can’t have on other work.”
Damn. And here I’ve been thinking Wyoming is some sort of heavenly place without crime. But of course, there is still crime. Nothing like Boston, probably, but that didn’t mean it doesn’t exist out here. “Who would do that?”
He releases the fence and crosses his arms, anger still radiating from him. “I can tell you exactly who did this. Jed Burke.”
Chapter 12
Clay
Almost as soon as Joshua takes the call from Trey, he, Tyler, and I head up to the pastures in a rush. I yell at Jake on the way out—one of our long-time ranch hands—to meet us up there with whoever he can gather together quickly. The three of us pile into my truck and head up.
“Jessa’s with him?” Joshua asks from the passenger side of the bench seat.
“Guess he must’ve been showing her the holistic pastures,” I say. Frustration gnaws at me. I don’t mind Trey spending time with Jessa, not really. But damn me if I don’t want to spend time with her, too.
“Bet he’s showing her a lot more than the pasture,” Tyler says from the middle of the bench seat, a sneer in his tone.
“Watch your mouth,” Joshua says before I can.
We ride in silence for a long moment, before Tyler mutters an apology. “She’s different. I don’t know what it is about her.”
It’s like my younger brothers read my own thoughts.
“That she is. She’s special,” Joshua says, and I can hear emotion in his voice. For Joshua, that says everything.
“Let’s just get up there and see about this fence business,” I say.
“We’re all going to have to talk about this eventually,” Joshua points out. Between us, Tyler grunts an agreement.
I know what Joshua says is true. We can’t go on like this. Another damn week and all four of us are going to be in love with the woman. What do we do then? Force her to choose? That is the only sane option, sure. But that doesn’t mean it’s the best one for our situation.
We rumble on the road in my old Ford the rest of the way in silence. It doesn’t take long before we’re up at the pasture, where I can see Jessa and Trey waiting for us along the fence line. Trey’s expression is steely, and beside him, Jessa waves nervously at us.
Why she nervous? Is it because of the fence, or something far more personal? I don’t know, but I’ll be damned if I’m not going to find out.
The three of us pile out of my truck and head quickly toward the two of them. As we approach, more details strike me. Jessa’s messy hair and slightly wrinkled clothing. Trey’s pissed, but there’s something about him, something more relaxed than normal.
I halt in my tracks.
Shit. They had sex. It’s fucking obvious, and I’m not sure how I feel about it. Half of me wants to tear Trey a new asshole. The other half wants to hug Jessa for finally dragging my brother out of his shell.
I can’t fucking tear Trey a new one, can I? I’ve already blown my chance with Jessa, haven’t I? Fuck. My mind is running through possibilities faster than I can keep up. But, am I even really jealous? I would do the same in his position.
“This way,” Trey says, heading farther into the pasture. We follow. From the corner of my eye, I see Jessa’s trying to smooth her clothes. They had sex, all right. Lucky motherfucker.
I wish I could find some certainty. Figure out the right thing to do here. And suddenly it strikes me.
We should share her.
The idea’s crazy. Outlandish. Definitely unconventional. But damn me if it doesn’t feel right. Would it bother me to see Jessa in Trey’s arms if I knew she’d soon move back to mine? Could I see her kiss Joshua or Tyler without jealousy?
Fuck my perverted ass, but I think I could. The question is, can my brothers say the same?
Before I can say anything, another truck engine rumble approaches. Trey stops, to make sure Jake and the other ranch hands can see us. He points ahead, and Jake nods, pulling off the side of the road. Trey resumes his stride, and in a couple of minutes, it becomes obvious why he called us here.
Rage swirls in my stomach and I grind my teeth. Someone did this. Someone who doesn’t give a fuck about even covering their handiwork. The cuts are obvious, clean and precise. The hole big enough for the cattle to push through in twos if they wanted to.
I glance at Jessa. She isn’t looking at me, and her ears are tinged in red. She’s embarrassed. I want to close the distance between us. Comfort her. There are more important things at work right now than this fence, and I have to keep focused on that. On her.
Then I can focus on the bastard attacking our ranch.
Jake has brought the necessary tools with him to get the fence mended quickly and until someone can get up here and really make it right. We work together and fix it pretty fast, well enough the cattle won’t wander through. A few minutes of chatting later, and Jake and the rest of the hands head back to finish the work they were already doing.
Trey starts to head back toward the truck, too. Looking unsure, Jessa trails behind him.
“Wait,” I say. “We need to talk.”
Trey stops and turns to look at me. His expression is guarded. I can tell that he doesn’t want to have this conversation any more than the rest of us. But I know my brother, he isn’t going to back down. Which is why I’m fond of my new idea.
“Can you tell us apart in bed?” I ask Jessa. I’m trying to joke, break the ice. But even I can hear the edge to my tone.
“Fuck off, Clay,” she says, even more red crawling up her neck to her face. Damn, the woman’s beautiful when she’s angry.
“What happens between Jessa and me is none of your damn business,” Trey says, jumping to her defense. “She isn’t yours.”
I raise my hands in defeat. “I was just kidding—a bad joke, I’ll give you that. But you guys just admitted it.” I take a
deep breath, needing a little fortitude for what I’m about to say. “I don’t mind, I swear it. I’m happy for you, even. But... I’d like to be with Jessa, too. And if I’m not mistaken, I think Tyler and Joshua feel the same way.”
Stunned silence greets me. And I decide that I need to get all of this out before anyone can gather their bearings enough to argue with me.
I turn to Jessa. “Look, honey. It’s pretty damn obvious that you’re attracted all four of us. And maybe, just maybe, you might even have real feelings for all of us. And I know you’ve been struggling with that.”
Her shocked expression twists into a small, relieved smile after a long moment. “Is it that obvious?”
There’s no polite way to answer that question, so I keep going with my point instead. “Unless I’m way off my mark, every one of my damn brothers wants to be with you as badly as I do. And while I know it’s a little crazy to say out loud, I don’t see any reason why we can’t try this. Why we can’t try all of us being with you. See how it goes.”
“I agree,” Joshua says, his calm voice and demeanor coming through clearly. “Jessa, you’re really special. Our situation here is unique. Maybe it doesn’t make sense to try to follow normal rules.”
“I’m in,” Tyler cuts in. “For however long this can work,” he says, a bit of his normal sardonic attitude creeping in.
I turn to Trey.
But Trey doesn’t look back at me. Instead, he turns his attention to Jessa. “Sweetheart, honestly, I’ll take you any way I can.”
As one, we all face Jessa. I can see the intrigue lacing her expression, but she’s clearly shy about her interest. And I know exactly what she’s thinking—about the same stupid societal norms that plague all of us, when they go against what we truly want in our hearts.
“I’m probably going to hell for saying this,” she says, voice soft, “but I think it could work.”
A rush of adrenaline courses through me. Despite the way I’d spoken, I didn’t really expect anyone to agree with me, let alone everyone. I just knew we had to say it.
