by Jane Jamison
The idea died a quick death once he’d opened his mouth.
Shit. He’s not here for me at all.
Suddenly, she didn’t want him there. Not only because he was trying to blow the sale, but because…
Damn it.
Because I hate the way he’s looking at me. Like he doesn’t like what he sees.
She hadn’t known Holter Lenning’s reason for selling. Now that she did, it shouldn’t have mattered, yet it suddenly did. Shame filled her.
Stop it. You’re here to do a job.
Damn it, she didn’t have any reason to be ashamed. Mr. Lenning was getting paid twice the fair market price for his land. In doing so, she’d raised the value of all the ranches around Garner. Hale should be thanking her instead of shooting her deadly looks.
“He’s getting a great price.”
He met her gaze with a hard one of his own. “A ranch is worth more than money. It’s the heart and soul of the people who live there. It’s their home, damn it.”
“I understand that.”
“No you don’t. If you did, you wouldn’t be buying more ranches. The more places you buy, the less other folks will stick around. You’re killing our town.”
She had to deny his accusation. Had to make him understand. Not for business purposes. Instead, she needed him to believe she wasn’t a horrible person.
“You’re the one who doesn’t understand. Once the mall is in, it’ll bring new people and more jobs to the area. What I’m doing will raise the standard of living in Garner. It’ll be like taking the town from drinking beer to loving champagne.”
“Who says we want a fancier lifestyle? Damn it, Raven. We thought you’d understand once you saw how we lived, but I guess we were wrong.” He pivoted on his heel and stormed out of the office.
She stayed where she was, even as the need to chase after him tore at her.
Please, Hale.
She’d taken a step after him before she slammed to a stop.
Please what? Please forgive me?
Why should she beg him when she hadn’t done anything wrong? She was determined to shake the guilt churning her stomach.
* * * *
To Raven’s surprise, Clint and Hale didn’t kick her off the ranch. By the time she’d returned, she’d half expected to see her suitcase sitting on the front porch.
“Are you all right, Raven?”
“I’m fine, Richard.” She checked again, searching the far ends of the porch just in case. Still no suitcase.
“You seem kind of rattled.”
I am. “Do I? No, I’m okay. I’m a little tired, I guess.”
“They’re treating you right, aren’t they? If not, you can come back to my sister’s house.”
“No. I’m okay here.” She faced Richard and put on a good face. “Why don’t you take the rest of the day off and enjoy visiting with your family?”
“Won’t you need me to take you into town again?”
He didn’t want to ask her outright if she had any more meetings to buy ranches. Although Richard was as loyal as the day was long, she had no doubt he’d heard about her plan and had probably gotten an earful from his sister. She wouldn’t ask his opinion and put him in the middle of the argument.
“I don’t think so. I have work I can do here as long as they have an Internet connection.” She hadn’t bothered getting online last night. Her head had been too filled with Clint and Hale.
He chuckled. “Garner’s a small town, but it has the usual modern conveniences.”
“Good to know. Okay, then, go on. If I need a ride, I’ll figure something out.”
“If you’re sure.”
“I’m sure. Go.” She started toward the house. By the time she’d made it to the front door, Richard already had the car halfway down the road toward the main road. “Maybe I should’ve checked to see if the door was still unlocked.” But that didn’t make sense. If they’d wanted her to leave, they would’ve put her things on the porch.
Fighting the paranoia creeping in, she pushed open the door and stepped inside. A fragrant aroma hit her, eliciting a rumble from her empty stomach. Whatever was cooking was mouth-watering.
Hale walked into the small dining area and set a serving plate on the table. “Hey, good timing.”
Not only wasn’t he tossing her out on her butt, he was smiling at her. What had changed?
“Something smells good.”
Clint came out of the kitchen carrying another platter. “It’s not much, but we decided on a big lunch.” He pointed out other dishes. “We’ve got pork chops, carrots, corn, sourdough bread, and peas. Sit down and dig in.”
She dropped her briefcase and purse combination on the couch. “I’m confused.”
“What about?” Hale moved to the built-in shelf and chose one of the three bottles of wine. “We don’t usually drink wine in the afternoon, but what the hell? Let’s live dangerously.”
“What’s wrong, Raven?” asked Clint.
She couldn’t figure them out. Were they playing with her? Setting her up for a big fall?
“Um, Clint, I’m not sure if Hale told you, but I bought the Lenning place this morning.”
Their cheerful expressions died but returned faster than she would’ve ever expected.
“He told me. I won’t say I’m happy about it, but let’s not talk about it right now. We don’t want to spoil a good meal. Besides, that’s business. This is pleasure.”
Hale even pulled out a chair for her. She took it, jumping only a little when he pushed it under her. Was he really over his anger?
The men took their seats, each on opposite sides of the table. Was that their plan? To pretend to be nice then attack her once her defenses were down? She hid her disappointment. If that was how they wanted things to go, then she’d play along.
Hale forked a pork chop onto each of their plates. “Help yourself. We don’t worry much about table manners.”
They filled their plates with large portions of the other food. After waiting a few moments, she did the same.
“So you aren’t like other women, huh?”
She stopped, her hand in midair with a heaping spoonful of carrots. “What do you mean?”
Clint motioned toward her plate. “Most women pretend they don’t eat like normal people.”
She dumped the carrots and looked at the rest of the food on her plate. “No. I eat what I want. Weight has never been an issue for me.”
“I don’t think I’ve ever heard a woman say that before,” joked Hale.
They took a few bites in silence. The quiet, however, was more than she could bear. She’d rather face a problem head-on.
“Look, I know you two are upset about my buying the ranches. Why not just say so?”
“Like I said, why spoil a good meal by getting angry?” Clint took a sip of the wine he’d poured for all of them. “Besides, we’re not going to change your mind in one sitting, and you’re sure as hell not going to change ours.”
“Clint’s right. Let’s keep the talk on safer topics.”
“Fine.” The wine was a better vintage than she would’ve imagined a rancher would have. “Tell me about yourselves.”
“There’s not much to tell.” Clint cut his meat and popped a piece into his mouth. “We’re like everyone else around here. Just your typical ranchers.”
They’re not typical anythings.
“We bought our ranch a few years ago after we did some time on the circuit.”
“The circuit?” She almost sighed as the pork chop melted in her mouth.
“The rodeo circuit.” Hale motioned with his knife at Clint then went back to cutting off another couple of pieces. “Clint and I did bronc riding as well as bull riding. But we won most of our prize money in calf roping.”
She put her utensils down. “Seriously? You rode bulls? But why? I can’t imagine there’s much money to be made by getting on the top of a big animal.”
“Not everything’s about the money.”
“So I’ve heard.”
“Hale’s right. Sure, we wanted to win and earn some money, but we did it because it was exciting and fun.”
“Do you still compete in rodeos?”
Hale topped off their drinks. “We go mainly as spectators now. The ranch takes up all our time.”
“That and we were never as good as some of the other guys around here. Like Mitch and Wy, as well as a few of the men at the shoot that day.”
“I never met anyone who did rodeos. I’ve never even been to a rodeo.”
Hale leaned back, seemingly surprised. “You’re from Houston, right?”
“That’s right.”
“How can you live in Texas and never go to a rodeo? That’s downright un-American.”
“What can I say? My family was more into the European kind of vacation. You know. Paris and London.”
“Champagne tastes, I guess.”
Was Hale baiting her by throwing her words back at her? “Yeah, I admit it. I prefer champagne—good champagne, of course—over beer. So sue me.”
“Okay, okay. Don’t get your panties in a bunch. So how’s the wine? Is it up to your high standards?”
“It’s quite good, actually.”
She eyed Hale. Was he being passive-aggressive? Or was she being overly sensitive? After all, she’d expected to continue their argument at the ranch. Had expected, in fact, to get ganged up on by the two of them. If they were going to jump all over her, she’d rather they did it in a more physical, sexual way.
Like before. Damn, but it was fun.
She’d thought about how they’d taken control. To her surprise, she’d enjoyed being at their command and had even started to think it might be fun to have them boss her around like Doms and a submissive. Although, according to what she’d read, bossing her around really wasn’t how it was. The sub gave herself over to her men to please them, and in return, they did their best to please her. If she understood it correctly, it was more of a symbiotic relationship than a power struggle.
Would she like giving up control again? Maybe more often than not? Hadn’t she fantasized about relaxing enough, trusting a man enough to let him take charge? Wouldn’t it be even better with two men?
Are Clint and Hale those two men?
A vision of her bent over, her hands on her knees, with Clint in front and Hale behind her washed through her. She could almost feel the imprint of Hale’s hand on her ass as Clint forced her to suck his cock into her mouth.
Would it feel even better to get spanked with a paddle?
“A penny for your thoughts.”
She jerked her mind back to reality. “What?”
“Sorry. Too cheap? How about a gold bar for your thoughts?”
Now she was sure he was digging at her. “Sorry. You can’t afford my thoughts.”
“Come on, you two. Keep it civil.” Clint snagged another bottle from the shelf and filled their glasses.
How many drinks did that make? Enough that she didn’t really care. “So you did rodeos and now you ranch? Is that it? No other business ventures?” What did she expect from cowboys? A spot on the stock exchange?
“We dabble in investments.”
Her gaze met Clint’s. “Really? You mean you have a portfolio? What firm manages it for you?”
“Yes and no. We have the portfolio, but we manage it. We make our own decisions. We like being in control.”
“And we do okay,” added Hale. “Okay enough not to have to sell our ranch if times get rough.”
She glared at him. “Keep it civil, remember?”
Another sip of her wine warmed her. Yet another kind of warmth slid in between her legs. Why did they have to be so damn sexy? Unlike a lot of men, the clothes did not make the man. They wore simple, inexpensive shirts and worn blue jeans. But they were much better looking than the men she saw every day with their Italian loafers and custom-made suits. She could still remember how her fingers had tangled in their chest hairs and how large their expansive chests had felt as she skimmed her palm from one side to the other.
Her gaze lowered along with her imagination. As though she could see through the wooden table, she visualized them sitting in the chairs naked with their rod-hard thighs nestling their enormous, curved cocks.
“Raven? Yo, Raven?”
For a second time, she had to force her mind back on reality. “Did you say something?”
“We asked you about your life. What’s it like being the daughter of the wealthiest man in the world?”
“He’s not even in the top ten, Clint.”
“He’s rich enough, right?”
She smiled, not so much at his question as her answer. “You can never be rich enough.” Suddenly, she wanted them to know that wasn’t what she believed. “At least, according to my father.”
“Are you saying you don’t agree with him?”
She didn’t see any challenge in Hale’s face. “Not really.”
“Then why do you do what you do?”
Again, no challenge. Instead, their open, curious expressions said it all.
“For the same reason you used to do rodeos. Being the best in business, getting a great deal, and pulling a plan together is fun and exciting. The money isn’t important.”
They resisted the urge to talk about the mall. The struggle to do so was evident in their hard eyes.
“I don’t know. I guess it’s partly the way I was raised. My father is the powerful one in my family, and my mother does everything he says. He rules in the home, just like in the office. I promised myself early on that I wanted to be the one to call the shots. I didn’t want to be a weak woman like my mother.”
She reached for her wine glass, although the wine had to be the reason she’d spilled her guts. Why else? It couldn’t be because she felt safe with them.
“I can see how that would’ve influenced you. But I have to wonder. Have you ever let go? Have you ever trusted anyone to take care of you?” Hale’s intense gaze searched her. “I don’t mean like your father. I’m talking about feeling protected and secure enough to be yourself with another person. To relax and let them shoulder your worries and responsibilities. You wouldn’t be giving up control. You’d be gaining support.”
She shook her head, almost too afraid to ask what he meant. Was he talking about sex or all of her life?
“Maybe you should.” Clint leaned forward. “You’re so tightly wound I’m surprised you don’t crack apart.”
“No, I’m not.”
“You don’t think so? Then try really letting go. Try not worrying about the next deal or how strong you have to be.”
She was as mesmerized by what he was saying as she was by the darkening of his eyes. “I’m not sure I know what you mean.”
“Yes, you do. Just do it, babe.”
They were talking about sex and nothing more. For now, that was all right. Suddenly, she felt the need to tell them, to make them understand. “I don’t know how.” She inhaled sharply, stunned by her admission.
Clint repeated Hale’s words. “Yes, you do.”
She shook her head and stood, pushing her chair back. “No, I don’t.” She felt wounded, afraid. How could she get her feelings back on an even footing? The only way she knew how to do that was to go on the offensive. To be in control. Or at least seem to be. “Why don’t you show me? Both of you?”
Clint was on his feet when Hale grabbed his arm. “No, Clint.”
“Why the hell not?”
Hale stood up and flattened his hands on the table. “Let’s put our cards on the table.”
Had he taken her offer for sex and changed it into a business deal? Disappointment hit her, but she hid it. “Sure. Go ahead.”
“We want you, Raven.”
She tried not to smile too big. “Tell me something I don’t know.”
“You don’t know that we want you for more than a few days.” Clint’s demeanor had shifted, growing serious like his brother’s.
&nbs
p; She frowned, trying to ignore the fast clip of her heartbeat. “Why?”
Hale leaned forward an inch more. “Why? Because we think you could be the woman we’ve been waiting for. The one we want as our lover. The one who will marry both of us, even if only one of us can do so legally.”
She jerked back as two contradictory emotions hit her. She was both surprised and thrilled. How did they always manage to confuse her? “Marry you? Are you serious? I don’t even know you.”
And yet her traitorous heart picked up the pace.
“We’re serious. Lots of people get married without knowing each other a long time. We have a gut feeling about you. We think you’re the right one for us. If things work out the way we hope. And if you can get your head on straight.”
The thrill didn’t dissipate even with Clint’s rude remark. The first rule of business insisted that she not show her emotions, especially anger. Still, her voice held a hint of anger. “You’ll have to explain.”
“We want you, babe, but you’ve got to get over your need to control everything. To control us. If we’re going to make it, you have to give your power to us. If you do, then you’ll find more happiness than you’ve ever known.”
Laughing was the farthest thing from her mind, but she forced out a harsh guffaw anyway. “So I’m supposed to let you tell me what to do? How to live? Wow. What a deal. I lose my freedom, and you gain a slave.”
“No, it’s not like that. We’re not talking about a fucking business deal, damn it. You give yourself to us, and we’ll give you everything we are back.” Clint spoke hard words, but his voice was softer, more reasonable than Hale’s.
“Let me guess. I’ll have to give up my plan to buy more ranches. Why? Because you say so.”
“Not because we say so.” Hale sighed and straightened up. “You’ll do it because it’s the right thing to do. Because you realize you have more to gain if you do. Because you’ll want to please us as much as we want to please you.”
Her mind whirled. Part of her wanted to tell them to go to hell. And yet, another side of her, the part of her that had been squashed down by her father, wanted nothing more than to promise she’d do as they wanted.
“Can you do that, sugar? Can you see a life here on the ranch with us?”
