A Little Harmless Ride

by Melissa Schroeder

  “I wasn’t at all but I loved it.”

  “But you don’t do it anymore.”

  “Not right now. I might return, but I was too far away from Dad when he got sick. I couldn’t leave him on his own, and I also needed a break.”

  He opened his mouth but was interrupted by the foreman.

  Jerry Mitchell was an older Hawaiian with a weathered face and nice eyes. Oh, he knew how to scare the crap out of his workers, but she knew he was kind from the way he looked at her. He reminded her a bit of her father.

  “Okay, shut the hell up.” The room quieted down. “Now a lot of you got to meet Crysta at the memorial for Joe, but now she’s your head boss, just like Eli.”

  She snorted and got a mean stare from Jerry. Okay, maybe he could scare her too. She sat up straighter and tried not to look at Eli. She knew he was probably laughing at her.

  They went through a few things, talking about the upcoming ranch party they have every year. Her mind started to wander. It had been a long trip from the mainland and now, a meeting…Crysta wasn’t a woman who liked to deal with that. She’d been a teacher, but she used all her extra time to play outside.

  “So, if anyone has any questions, let me know. Ms. Miller, did you want to say anything?”

  Almost every person looked at her. “Uh, okay. She stood and the room swayed a little. She needed sleep.

  “I want to thank everyone for the welcome. I know that most of you understand the terms of the will, but I wanted to make sure everyone realizes that everything stays the same. Eli is going to teach me a bit about the ranch and I’m going to be out there working, but just so you know, I don’t expect special treatment. Thank you all for being so welcoming.”

  She sat back down next to Eli. Mike got back up and started talking. She couldn’t believe that her heart was beating so hard. She hoped they didn’t notice.

  As if reading her thoughts, Eli leaned closer and said, “You did good, Crysta.”

  A few minutes later, the meeting was over and they were walking toward the house.

  “Wanna ride tomorrow?” Eli asked.

  She glanced at him. For a second, she had thought he meant…

  “If you don’t want to, we can--”

  “No, that will be great. I’ve wanted to see it all since Joe told me about it.”

  “It’s a date,” Eli said with a smile.

  They walked into the house without another word. The day of travel was starting to hit her. She suddenly felt so tired that the thought of undressing seemed to be too much.

  “Hey, you go on up. I have some work to do,” Eli said.

  “Night, Eli.”

  He stood at the bottom of the stairs and watched her. When she reached the top and glanced down, he was gone.

  She needed a good night’s sleep and she would stop daydreaming about her partner. Well, okay, maybe not stop, but at least control it.

  Because falling for her last Dom had left her emotionally scarred and she wasn’t ready for that again.

  No man was worth it.

  Chapter Six

  Crysta beat Eli to the kitchen the next morning. It was about thirty minutes before dawn and she was sitting in the kitchen talking on her phone and drinking coffee. He was hard pressed to remember when anyone, even Joe, got up earlier than he did. Eli was accustomed to spending time alone in the mornings.

  “Yes, everyone’s been great. So far. It’s been less than twenty-four hours.”

  She laughed, the sound of it drifting back to him and it had his heart doing a little two-step. Damn, the woman was a delight. He had labeled her off limits, which usually worked for him, but there was something about her that broke through those barriers. He wanted to know more about her. He could try and convince himself it was because they were partners or that she had been important to Joe.

  Eli just didn’t believe in lying to himself.

  “No, I don’t think it would have been a good idea to ride yesterday. I was sort of tired. I met all the hands though.”

  She was quiet and he knew Ham was probably talking. Since she was preoccupied with her father, Eli leaned against the doorjamb and watched her.

  Joe had told him she was a looker the first time he’d been over on the mainland to meet her. Eli had seen the pictures, but now he knew what Joe talked about. She was pretty. He didn’t think there was anyone who would argue with that. But it went beyond good genes. Even with everything she had been through the last few years, she still glowed with happiness.

  “No, nothing else has happened.”

  Ah, so girlie wasn’t going to tell her father about her Uncle Sam’s appearance. He didn’t blame her, but it was good to know. If Ham called him, which he knew her father would, he wanted to make sure he knew what to reveal.

  “Ashton called? Why would he call you?”

  Ashton?

  “I have no idea why he would call after all these months. I didn’t notice any missed calls yesterday.”

  Another long period of silence.

  “Well, it’s good the cheating bastard is there and not here. I think Joe has a great collection of guns for me to use.”

  She laughed.

  “I promise not to shoot him. I’ve got to go. Besides, Eli’s been standing behind me eavesdropping for the last five minutes.”

  She smiled over her shoulder at him. “Haven’t ya, cowboy?”

  For a second—okay maybe two—his brain stuttered to a stop. Her sweet southern voice rolled over the words. He wanted to walk to her and kiss that sassy smile off her lips. Instead, he tipped his head then walked over to the coffee pot.

  “I’m not being mean to Eli. And that’s a fine how do you do that you’re worried about his feelings.”

  She laughed again.

  “Sure. Talk to you later, love you.”

  She hung up.

  “So, get an earful, Elias?” she asked, her tone teasing, even flirtatious.

  “Sure. Especially picked up on the whole not telling your father about Sam, too.”

  She sighed. “Nothing’s changed and he’s already worried about me. If something else happens, I’ll let him know.”

  Eli knew she was telling the truth. She might have hidden yesterday’s altercation with her uncle, but she would tell him eventually.

  “Do you tell your father everything? You seem really close.”

  She shrugged as she poured herself some more coffee. “I guess so.”

  “Including your membership to BDSM clubs?”

  He hadn’t mentioned anything about it since the other day nor had she. She leaned a hip against the counter and studied him over her coffee cup.

  “No. I’m sure he has some kind of idea of my…tastes. It’s not something a Daddy wants to discuss with his little girl.”

  “And Ashton?”

  Her smile faded. “No one in particular.”

  “If you’re avoiding someone and he followed you here, I need to know.”

  She gave him a strange look. “You think he would follow me here? Believe me, that’s not going to happen.”

  “I’m assuming this is the ex. Joe wanted to hunt him down and castrate him.”

  She chuckled. “God, I miss Uncle Joe.”

  She said nothing else. He knew he was showing his hand but he couldn’t keep from asking, “Well?”

  She blinked those big blue eyes at him. “Well, what?”

  He had a feeling she was doing it on purpose. He didn’t know if it was to keep from answering because she wanted to keep it private, or if she was fucking with him. He figured it was the latter.

  “Ashton. Anything you need to tell me about?”

  “He’s not a security risk, believe me. He probably heard I rented my house out for another year.”

  “In DC?”

  “No, I was living down near Virginia Beach when I was teaching. But, when Dad got sick, I moved up to DC and rented the house out.”

  “I assume this Ashton didn’t like that?”

 
; “We’d already broken up at that point.”

  When she didn’t continue, he didn’t ask again She apparently didn’t want to answer the questions. He didn’t blame her. What bothered him was that he wanted to know more. He wanted to know why they were broken up. Well, he knew why. Crysta might have a good heart, but he knew without a doubt she wouldn’t put up with cheating. How could a man cheat on a woman like Crysta?

  “I need to brush my teeth and get my hat and boots.”

  He nodded and let her go. He didn’t know what to think of his reaction. He rarely cared about a woman’s past. Only thing he worried about was the here and now. Unless she had something that was going to come after them at some point, Eli didn’t care.

  And when had he become a man who stood around a kitchen thinking about a woman. Especially one he wasn’t sleeping with.

  He shook his head. Lack of sleep and the stress of the last couple of months were starting to get to him. He dumped the little bit of coffee he had left, and went out to get the horses ready.

  * * * *

  Crysta drew in a huge breath of sweet Hawaiian air and sighed. They’d ridden for about half an hour before stopping. She couldn’t believe the beauty of the land. Over the years, she’d read about Hawaii, seen it in movies and on television, but living there, being right on the land just blew her away. It was like she was in a whole other dimension. No picture could relate the feel of the air against the flesh or show the colors as vividly as they were in person.

  “Our land goes just over that last hill there,” Eli said pointing out over the horizon.

  She looked out to where he pointed. When she thought of Hawaii, she thought of “Hawaii 5-0” or maybe “50 First Dates”. She didn’t expect to see the wide expanse of land before her now. Joe had told her about it, but it still took her breath away.

  When she glanced over, she found Eli watching her. He did that a lot, but it didn’t really bother her. Not really. Okay maybe a little. It made her feel awkward. She knew he was a Dom, and knowing that made her hot inside. And that was how sad she had become. She was lusting after a man who was definitely off limits and, as Ashton proved, way out of her league. If she couldn’t handle Ashton, she definitely couldn’t handle Eli.

  “It’s weird to be looking out over the land like I’m on Bonanza or something.”

  He chuckled. “It’s more than I ever expected.”

  “How did you end up here, Elias St. John?”

  He didn’t say anything right away. It was as if he was trying to figure out what story to tell her. Or, maybe that was her being cynical after her episode with Ashton.

  “I grew up in Perth, foster kid.”

  That much she knew.

  “Please, stop talking. I’m overwhelmed.”

  His lips curved as he urged his horse forward. “Not much to tell. Went right into the military, then got out and met Joe.”

  “Yeah, he told me that much,” she said following him. “Hey, you don’t want to tell me more, that’s fine.”

  “Really?” His voice dripped with sarcasm.

  She laughed as she came up even with him. “Yeah. Really. I’ve always been sort of a busy bee as Dad called me. I always had to know what was going on.”

  “And probably why you were a good teacher.”

  She glanced over at him. “Yeah. But how would you know I was a good teacher?”

  “I doubt Crysta Louise Miller—”

  “Oh, I hate that middle name.”

  “Would do anything half way. You had to be good at it. But you left it.”

  It was more a statement but she also understood he was looking for an explanation.

  “I was burnt out. At the time, leaving made sense. Dad was sick and needed me. There is always a chance I would go back. I just thought I wasn’t doing my best so I stepped back for awhile.”

  “And you just proved me right.”

  She laughed. “Men always have to be right…even when they’re wrong.”

  He chuckled but said nothing else as they rode along for a few moments together in companionable silence. She missed this. Leisure time especially, but Crysta truly had missed riding. It had been a love of hers in high school. She made a decision to look for a horse and place to lodge it when she returned to the mainland.

  “So, Joe said you competed?”

  It was odd. Not the question but the way he asked it. She had been involved with a few Doms and many of them relished the silence. If they wanted to know something, they usually allowed the other person to become uncomfortable. But then, he wasn’t her Dom and she wasn’t his sub. Unfortunately.

  No. Not that. Really.

  “Yeah, mainly barrel racing as I told you yesterday.”

  “Hmm, so you’re good at racing?”

  She slanted him a look then noticed that the barn was a speck in the distance.

  “Sure am. Race ya to the barn,” she said, then kicked her horse into a gallop.

  Crysta took off, her hair flying behind her and the feel of a good, strong horse beneath her. It had been so long since she had done this, just let loose. She heard him behind her, his horse’s gallop a thunder against the Hawaiian earth.

  She reached the barnyard before him even though he was right behind her. She slowed her horse down and turned to greet him. He was laughing like she was and there was a hint of admiration in his eyes.

  “You definitely know how to ride, Crysta.”

  She didn’t miss the double entendre, but she didn’t react to it. Ranch hands had gathered in the yard and she didn’t want them to think something was going on between them.

  “Of course I do. I’m a Kaheaku,” she shouted back at him laughing.

  A cheer went up in the yard as Eli moved his horse closer. Then, just loud enough for her to hear, he said, “Be careful who you challenge, Crysta. It might come back to bite you in the ass.”

  Then he tipped his hat and rode off with that cocky smile of his curving his lips.

  Chapter Seven

  Eli ran the flat of his tongue across her nipple and sighed with pleasure. Delight danced through his blood as he licked his way down her body. Cocoa colored skin that tasted of heaven and sin all rolled into one—he never expected this. When he reached her pussy, he glanced up at her. Her arms were tied to his headboard, her eyes covered with a blindfold.

  “Spread your legs, Crysta. I want to see that dripping pussy I own.”

  She didn’t hesitate. Eli sighed again. She was glistening with arousal. He leaned down to gain a lick, but a loud buzz stopped him.

  Eli woke with a start, then fell off his bed onto the wooden floor. Sharp pain exploded in his head as it smacked against the hard surface. Even before he opened his eyes, he was seeing stars.

  “Fuck.”

  Reaching up, he grabbed his alarm clock and yanked it out of the wall. After tossing it on the bed, he opened his eyes. He was just lucky he landed on his ass and not on his stomach. He could have done some serious damage seeing that he was painfully aroused. Slowly, he sat up. Eli winced. Damn. He was going to have bruises on his bum.

  Two weeks and he was in a state about his partner. Each night the dreams got more detailed. He could still taste her on his tongue. Not that he knew what she tasted like, but he had a good imagination.

  He rose to his feet and scrubbed a hand over his face. The last couple of days, he had slept until his alarm sounded. That wasn’t normal for him. Of course, a man in his late thirties having wet dreams about his partner wasn’t normal for anyone either. Better to jump in the shower and rinse away the memories of the dream. Before he could make it, there was a knock at his door.

  “What?”

  “Are you alright?” Crysta asked.

  “Of course I am.”

  She paused before saying anything else. He didn’t blame her. He had barked out the order and he knew he sounded downright mean.

  “Okay. It’s just I heard a loud crash.”

  “I didn’t crash.”

 
; “If you say so. See ya downstairs.”

  He listened to her retreating footsteps. Sighing, he headed into the bathroom. A cold shower should do him up good, then he could deal with work. And at some point, he needed to get over to Oahu and Rough ‘n Ready. Dreaming about Crysta proved to him he needed a release. Once he got a fix, he would stop dreaming about her.

  Even as he thought it, he knew it was a lie, but clinging to that thought was the only thing keeping him sane.

  * * * *

  Crysta tried not to be irritated. It was getting harder every day with Eli being such a bear to her. When she first learned the information about the will, she expected him to be an ass. Seriously, she would have understood. But he had been welcoming, showing her stuff about the ranch, sharing information.

  Now, his niceness seemed to have worn off. He was being an ass on a regular basis. She knew he fell out of bed. He had lied to her, then got pissed that she checked on him. Men. As much as she understood about them and their egos, she could never understand why they reacted as they did. Most of them lashed out at you if you tried to help. She could remember her usually laid back father being a total pain in the ass when he was in the hospital.

  She shook those memories away and thought about Eli. Crysta knew part of it was her fault. Well, not that he fell out of bed. She’d been so preoccupied with Eli she hadn’t been sleeping well. She couldn’t seem to get the idea of submitting to him out of her mind. After watching him on the ranch the last few weeks, she knew Eli would be a stellar Dom. Submitting to him would probably be the stuff dreams were made of.

  Those thoughts were whirling through her head as she lay awake. Then, she heard the crash.

  “That smells good,” Jerry said as he walked through the door and headed toward the coffee pot.

  She shook her head trying to ignore her last thoughts about Eli. She smiled at Jerry.

  “You haven’t had a cup yet?”

  He nodded but didn’t explain further. She’d enjoyed the talks they’d been having every morning. He reminded her a lot of Joe and her father. His dry humor and no nonsense way of looking at life always delighted her.

  “Where’s Eli?”