by Robin Gideon
“I like it here.”
“What’s to like?”
“Wouldn’t you like to know?” Katie smiled, having regained her composure enough to use her ex’s own words to taunt him. “How long have you been…?”
The words drifted away, and Katie saw the hatred for her in David’s eyes. He walked slowly across the saloon to the bar.
“Jail. That’s the word you’re avoiding saying. How long have I been out of jail? Let’s talk about how long I was in jail. All because of you.”
“Keep your distance. You got locked away before for hurting me. Don’t make it worse for yourself.”
David shrugged his shoulders in a gesture that said doing jail time meant nothing. Katie knew otherwise. David wasn’t a street thug who needed to beef up his street cred by doing some time behind bars. He was an investment analyst with a solid education and no job.
He sat on a barstool, affecting a nonchalant pose. Now only the mahogany bar separated the man Katie loathed and feared from herself. Her palms were clammy with fear, and her throat felt tight.
“How about making me a Manhattan? You know how I like them.”
Katie cleared her throat, looked inside herself for courage, and then said, “No. I want you to leave. I’ve got a restraining order against you. You’re not supposed to be within five hundred yards of me.”
“What a California court says doesn’t mean shit in North Dakota. Now let’s have that Manhattan.”
Katie didn’t want to serve him, but she was alone with a man she knew hated her, and though he wasn’t a big man, he was big enough and strong enough to give her another thorough beating. She knew, tragically from experience, that he had no compunction against using violence on a woman.
She made the mixed drink, careful to measure accurately, wanting it to taste proper. At one time, she had thought David to be a level-headed gentleman. She eventually learned that he was a hothead who couldn’t control his temper, and that there was no telling what would infuriate him. Most of all, she learned that when he got into a rage, he let his fists do the talking.
“Oh yes, that’s the ticket,” he said after testing his cocktail. “You always could make a good mixed drink.” His gaze lifted from the drink slowly, deliberately. “You’ve made some bad mistakes. Real bad ones. I wasn’t going to forgive you for what you’ve done, but seeing you now, looking all pretty even in a shit hole like this, makes me feel generous. We can start all over again, but you’ve got to promise that you’ll never, ever go to the police again, no matter what. I won’t allow it.”
“No, we can’t.” Katie said the words slowly and distinctly. There was no equivocation in her tone. “I could never forgive—”
He lunged for her, leaping halfway over the bar, his lip raised in an ugly, feral sneer, his fingers curled like talons as he reached for Katie’s throat. She tried to scream but couldn’t make a sound. The grill stopped her backward progress, but she managed to move just beyond his grasp.
“Cunt!” he growled.
His feet were off the floor, his stomach on the mahogany bar as he reached for Katie. Grabbing the bar with his left hand, he pulled himself forward, sliding belly-down on the polished wood.
Katie leaped to the side, moving parallel to the bar. David touched Katie’s wrist, but he couldn’t get her in his grasp. A moment later, he fell headfirst over the bar and down onto the floor.
Katie reached the end of the bar and was around it in a flash, her feet quickened by primal fear. Now she was in the main area of the saloon, and David was behind the bar.
“Cunt!” he said again, getting to his feet.
Katie made it to the front door in five furious strides. She was outside a moment later, running as quickly as she could while wearing her high heels.
She saw the two pickups on the highway some four hundred yards away. It was the McGowan clan coming for supper. She nearly cried she was so grateful to see the familiar vehicles. After fifty yards, she stopped running. David wouldn’t dare strike out at her now, she figured. Like all men who beat women, he was a coward. He’d never stand up to a man like Aaron.
She heard the crash of glass just as the first pickup pulled off the highway onto the saloon’s gravel driveway. There was a second crash of glass a moment later. Then she saw David hurry out of the saloon and jump into a very old Toyota coupe.
“You little bastard,” Katie whispered as the Toyota sped in the opposite direction of the pickups, kicking up gravel as it roared toward the highway.
Turning, Katie went back into the Mountain View Saloon to find out just how much damage her one-time lover had caused.
* * * *
Aaron could tell that Katie was nervous about something. He just wasn’t sure what it was. He didn’t believe the innocuous story she’d concocted about the mirror getting broken with a cast-iron pan in her haste to get ready for the evening rush. The fact that she seemed to be avoiding looking him directly in the eyes didn’t add to her credibility.
But if it wasn’t the accident that she’d described, what had broken the mirror? Why make up a story?
Of course, an easy answer to Katie’s unease could have been the fact that she had been asked to move into a ranch with four brothers, and be lover to all of them. Aaron had left little doubt as to just exactly what he expected of Katie, and what she could expect from the McGowan clan. The arrangement, though loving in the extreme, was anything but conventional. And should the outside world discover their living and loving arrangement, Katie’s reputation would take a beating by the rather conservative-minded citizens of Elk’s Crossing.
Sitting on a barstool, having just finished his meal of a twelve-ounce New York strip steak done medium-rare, a baked potato the size of his fist with butter and sour cream, and a large green salad with the house dressing, Aaron watched as Katie cleared away the dishes from in front of his brothers.
When she’d left the Circle-Square-Circle Ranch earlier in the day, she hadn’t said “no” to his proposition, but she hadn’t said “yes” either. That left the door to his heart wide open, and it made him feel vulnerable, which wasn’t a comfortable position for a man as determined to control his own fate as Aaron.
When Katie finally stepped closer to Aaron, he gave her a half smile and asked in a low voice, “Is something bothering you?”
Katie combed fingers through her blonde hair. He liked the way she did that because it momentarily caused her breasts to press snugly against her shirtfront, and caused her coiffure to have a slightly mussed appearance, which he enjoyed. As he looked at her while she searched for words, he realized there wasn’t much about her that didn’t please him enormously.
Finally, she shook her head and said, “It’s nothing, really.”
“Listen, I know what I’ve asked of you isn’t something you were prepared for. You being the McGowan lady for all four of us—that’s not something to say ‘yes’ to without thinking it through. But I don’t want you to feel pressured. There are no time restraints on you. If it takes you an hour or a day or a month to think this through, then that’s just how long it takes. My brothers and I will just have to accept that.” He glanced to the side to make sure only the McGowan men could hear what he was saying to Katie. “I hope you don’t regret what’s happened so far. And never forget your safe word. Whisper it once, and everything stops then and there.”
“I want you to know that—”
Katie’s words were cut off when two cowboys from a neighboring ranch suddenly bolted to their feet, squaring off against each other, hands balled into fists.
“Boys, either you calm down and take a seat, or you can leave right now,” Katie said sharply, her blue eyes intense. “Act like gentleman, and the Mountain View Saloon will welcome you. Act like damned fools, and you’ll never eat another meal or drink another beer in here.”
She couldn’t have said or done anything more to impress Aaron and his brothers. Now, more than ever, he knew that she was the woman for them, and they we
re the men for her. All four of them.
But she had yet to agree to being their woman, their lover. Not for just one of them or some of them, but for all four brothers. It was the only way a woman wouldn’t split them up, and they had to stay together for the ranch.
* * * *
It was almost eleven o’clock when the cowboys from the Janson & Sons Ranch left the Mountain View Saloon, promising Katie to return the following evening. She wasn’t alone, though. The McGowan men were still there, some at the bar sipping beers, others at the pool table playing eight-ball with dedication, skill, and a fierce determination to win. It was clear to Katie that the brothers absolutely hated losing at any game to another brother. The twenty-dollars-per-game bet they had going was kept discreet because Katie’s grandmother didn’t approve of gambling. They weren’t the type of men to be overtly disrespectful, but in the time that Katie had been working at the saloon, she’d seen too many twenties surreptitiously get passed from one cupped hand to another for her to not know what was happening.
It had been several hours since seeing David. Looking into his eyes had put a chill in her bones that had stuck with her. How had she ever thought anything positive about him? Why hadn’t she, from the very beginning, seen through the pleasant exterior he showed to people? What he presented was all a façade, hiding a truly wicked, heartless, self-centered man that stayed in the shadows.
Stop beating yourself up over mistakes that are in the past. Learn from them and make sure you never again make such stupid decisions.
She looked over the bar at Aaron. He was at the pool table, a cocky grin on his too-kissable lips as he watched Garrett lining up what even Katie could see was an improbable shot on the three ball. Garrett was forever matching and measuring himself against Aaron. Katie knew that he adored his oldest brother, but that didn’t stop him from desperately wanting to beat him.
Garrett took his shot, his stroke smooth, though not quite accurate. The cue ball kissed the three, moving it to within a fraction of an inch from the side pocket. But the cue ball continued rolling, eventually tapping the eight ball, which dropped into the corner pocket. The winners cheered, and the losers groaned. Katie noted that Aaron didn’t cheer, though he was smiling.
“One of these days, you’ll be beating me regular,” Aaron said as he extended his hand to Garrett. Though the brothers did, in fact, shake hands, Katie saw that a twenty-dollar bill went from one palm to the other. “But that day isn’t this day. Thanks for the match.”
Garrett’s expression was dour. “Thanks for the lesson, I guess.”
I love how gracious Aaron is with his brothers. They more than just love him, they respect him. His biggest concern for me was whether or not I felt pressured. It’s no wonder I’m in love with them.
The simple, concise acceptance of her love for the McGowans came with an almost electric shock to Katie. She flinched and closed her eyes for a moment, forcing composure to return as swiftly as it had abandoned her.
Aaron turned his head, his gaze meeting and holding Katie’s. The characteristic half smile was there, as was the amusement in his eyes. It was so obvious that he enjoyed spending time with his brothers that Katie felt an uncharitable pang of envy, and wished that she had a roomful of siblings she could call her own. Not by nature uncharitable, and suddenly and irrefutably aware that she was in love with four—count ’em, four—gorgeous men, Katie’s heart skipped a beat. Libidinous thoughts came rushing to the forefront of her consciousness like a tsunami of lust.
She walked around the mahogany bar and went to the front windows that looked out onto the gravel parking lot. As she walked she was distinctly aware of the slow scissoring of her thighs, of the subtle pulsing in her clit. She could feel the collective McGowan gaze on her, some looking at her with undisguised desire, others with a bit more discretion. Their visual touch made the surface of her skin tingle with a low-voltage sexual electricity. Even before she got to the front windows of the saloon, she could feel that her nipples had grown hard and erect and were extremely sensitive.
She looked out the window past the neon sign advertising a popular beer sold at the saloon. The only vehicles in the parking lot were her own car and the two big pickups belonging to the McGowans. Behind her, the crisp crack! of billiard balls had resumed after a brief stoppage. Though Aaron had won the previous game, and by rights “owned” the table, it sounded like Blair was playing against Flynn in the newest game of eight-ball. Flynn was promising to redeem himself by getting revenge.
In the reflection in the dark window, Katie watched as Aaron approached her from behind. She made a point of not making eye contact with him through the window, but his nearness, his masculine presence, was so powerful it felt as though she was suddenly wrapped in a warm, protective blanket.
The McGowans are the world’s best security blanket.
She smiled at the thought.
“Want to let me in on what’s so pleasing?” Aaron asked.
He stood very close. Katie closed her eyes and inhaled, catching the subtle scent of aftershave, though she couldn’t tell the brand. The McGowans, upon finishing their labors for the day and before arriving for their dinner at the saloon, always showered. It was just one more reason that Katie wanted to take little nibbling bites out of each and every one of them.
“Pleasing? I thought you’d say ‘funny.’”
“That’s the smile of a woman who is pleased, not one who finds something funny.”
“Aaron, you’re without a doubt the most perceptive man I’ve ever met in my life.”
“Kind of makes you want to spend the rest of your life with me then, doesn’t it?”
He had said it in jest, but beneath the bonhomie was an inquiring seriousness that Katie picked up. Looking out at the nearly empty parking lot, Katie was for once thankful that the majority of her patrons showed up for meals and left before closing time. She turned slowly until she faced Aaron. Standing so close, even in her four-inch heels, she had to tilt her head far back on her shoulders to look up into his face.
“As a matter of fact, yes, it does.” She saw his eyes widen as the impact of her words registered. For a moment it seemed like he would let out a whoop! of victory, but Aaron remained silent. “When I left San Francisco, I figured Elk’s Crossing was just a stopping place for me to spend some time, to let the bruises on my soul fade away. I never thought I’d fall in love with you.” She felt her cheeks get warm and suspected she was blushing visibly. “And I never dreamed I’d fall in love with all your brothers. Who can say in advance what’s going to happen in our lives?”
“What are you saying…exactly?”
Katie slipped her hand into his and stepped away from the window. Aaron followed her as she pulled him along over to the pool table. She took Aaron by the shoulders and gave him a firm push so that he half sat on the edge of the pool table. Though she kept her attention focused on Aaron, with her peripheral vision she saw the other brothers slowly moving, surrounding her. That was what she wanted, though their nearness was adding to her unease.
Even Katie wasn’t entirely sure what she was about to do.
Katie took a step back and let her gaze run slowly up and down over Aaron. From his cowboy boots to his jeans to his plaid shirt to the downturned moustache, he exuded quiet, country confidence. He was a man secure in his own skin. Like an aura that hovered around him, there was a rugged and dependable masculinity that Katie knew instinctively that she could count on.
“You look like you just stepped out of a Ralph Lauren ad,” she said quietly.
“Who’s he? Should I be jealous?” There was just enough possessiveness in Aaron’s tone to trigger an immediate, favorable, feminine response from Katie.
“You’ve never heard of Ralph Lauren?” Katie couldn’t imagine anyone from her San Francisco days not having heard of the designer. She thought everyone was familiar with his work.
“I know pretty much everyone in a three-hundred-mile radius of Elk’s Crossi
ng, and I’ve never heard of this Ralph fella.”
Katie sighed, her head slanted slightly to the side. “That only makes me want you even more.”
“How well does this guy know you?”
“He’s never laid eyes on me.”
With a lifted eyebrow, he said, “Eyes I can forgive. When it comes to hands and other body parts, I get less forgiving.”
Katie stepped between the well-polished black boots he wore in the evenings. “I can live with that,” she said quietly. Every McGowan heard what she’d said. Though none of them spoke, Katie had heard an audible intake of breath from several of them. “Aaron, you’re the head of the McGowan clan, the alpha male that all your brothers look to for guidance. And on recent evenings, you’re the man who held me with my elbows back, blindfolding me”—she cleared her throat, pushing on though she was finding it difficult to choose just the right words for the occasion—“so that I wouldn’t know which one of your brothers was touching, kissing me…fucking me.”
“You could have stopped it just by—”
She stopped his words by pressing the pads of her fingertips against his lips. “Yes, yes, yes. I know that I could have stopped it. I didn’t use my safe word because I didn’t want to. I knew I was safe.” She closed her eyes and felt the blush rising in her cheeks. “I’ve never known such eroticism in my entire life. To be so dominated by you, to be held in bondage by your arms while your brothers touched me, kissed me”—a shiver went through her—“kissed me everywhere.” She closed her eyes for a moment. “The blindfold...not knowing which one of you...”
She moved a fraction of a step closer to Aaron, and now her knees were between his. Her mouth felt dry, and her palms were clammy. There were four McGowan men looking at her, devouring her with their collective gaze, and listening to every soft-spoken word, but she only looked at Aaron.
