Lazy B Ranch 00 California Cowboy

by Maggie Casper

  Clay lifted her until she was perched on the edge of the desk. He moved in close. She could feel the length of his still-clothed body as he stood between her splayed thighs. His hands were everywhere, touching and teasing until she couldn’t catch her breath.

  His teeth nipped, his tongue laved and when he lowered himself to his knees, she gave not a single word of protest. She wasn’t sure she could have put enough words together to form a sentence even if she’d wanted to protest.

  Clay placed tender kisses up the inside of her knee as his hands caressed between her thighs. When he penetrated her with his large fingers, she thought she would collapse. When his breath replaced his fingers, she tensed and struggled to scoot her bottom back on the desk, separating her drenched pussy from his awaiting mouth.

  Clay frowned and looked up at her, startling her into closing her eyes.

  “Look at me, baby. I want to be sure you understand what I’m telling you.” His voice was soothing, yet hard. He meant business, whatever it was he wanted to talk about.

  “You can’t do that,” she whispered, completely mortified to be in such an undignified position.

  “I can and I will. I can’t believe you’ve never had anybody taste this sweet pussy of yours.” He chuckled when she blushed. Bobbie could feel the heat invade her cheeks as it moved up her face.

  His eyes narrowed as he grasped her thighs and pulled her until she was once again seated at the very edge of the desk. He swung both of her legs over his shoulders and placed her hands one either side of her thighs, folding her knuckles around the edge of the desktop.

  “Stay just like that, darlin’. Don’t move an inch.”

  Bobbie opened her mouth to speak, but Clay made one long swipe with his tongue that cleared her mind of any argument. He licked and lapped at her folds until she was in ecstasy. Bobbie couldn’t contain the ear-splitting scream that tore from her throat when she came. Her body tensed and shuddered as if the climax would go on forever, its intensity almost painful.

  Bobbie came back to herself as Clay stood, towering over her as he unfastened the buttons of his fly. He wore nothing beneath, allowing the thick length of his erection to spring free.

  He moved between her thighs and kissed her so savagely she thought he would devour her. Bobbie could taste her essence on his lips. It wasn’t disgusting like she’d thought it would be, but it was different.

  “I want to touch you,” she told him.

  “Not this time, baby. If you touch me now, I’ll explode.” His voice was husky, hurried, as he laid her back on the hard surface of the desk. The sound of it aroused her further, to think that she could bring a man to such frenzy was empowering.

  “I’m afraid I can’t wait much longer as it is, darlin’,” he apologized as his fingers grazed her clit, gliding over her slick skin, teasing and petting until she was once again mindless with need.

  The feel of his body pressed against hers was incredible, making her gasp with pleasure. He was big and warm, but as his hands lifted her hips, preparing her for his entry, Bobbie remembered what it was that she hadn’t told him.

  “Clay,” she said. Bobbie was nervous, but afraid he would stop if she just blurted out the fact that she was a virgin.

  Instead of answering her, Clay kissed her hungrily as he plunged his cock deep within her tight vagina. He groaned when her body gripped him as it struggled to accommodate his size.

  Bobbie hadn’t been prepared for his swift invasion. The initial pinch of pain caused her to stiffen and gasp against his mouth. Even as the initial pain subsided she still couldn’t relax; her body was on fire with the need for him to move.

  She could feel her muscles pulse around Clay’s cock, every inch of her was filled with him. The erotic pressure continued to build even though Clay had yet to move. His hands left her and for a moment she was afraid to open her eyes.

  “Good God!” Clay said. Bobbie opened her eyes at that and could see he was trying to control his temper. “Why in the hell didn’t you say something?”

  “I ... I didn’t...,” was all Bobbie got out before Clay moved slightly within her. “Oh,” she gasped. The feel of him moving so deeply within her sent stars shooting behind her eyes.

  “Dammit,” he thundered and stilled again.

  “No, Clay, please don’t stop,” she begged when he stopped moving. She wanted him to move ... no, she needed him to move.

  “Just hold still,” he growled and then tensed as if to move away.

  Bobbie twined her arms around his neck. “Stay in me, Clay. Oh God,” she panted. “If you don’t do something, I’m gonna die. I just know I will.”

  She felt his body relax at her words. The first tentative movement of his hips was like water to a thirsty man. She couldn’t get enough. Clay was like a drug, addictive and strong. Her body began to open up, yielding to his throbbing flesh and before long she was meeting him thrust for thrust. Their bodies met with intense pleasure until they were over swept with a climax so strong it was almost painful.

  As the last of the spasms subsided, Bobbie relaxed, snuggling closer to Clay. She could get used to these secret rendezvous as long as she kept her heart right were it belonged, safe behind the brick wall her father had helped build for it all those years ago. If she could accomplish that, she’d be just fine.

  It wasn’t until Clay pulled away from her that she realized he was still mostly dressed, while she was completely naked. She looked up to comment on the fact that he was still dressed but the anger in his eyes stopped her short.

  “Of all the damned idiotic things you’ve done in the last few days, that has to take the cake!” he sneered.

  Bobbie opened her mouth to protest but didn’t have a chance to say a word before he laid into her again. “I could have hurt you. Did you ever stop to think of that?”

  He didn’t seem to be in the mood to let her speak, so she chose to stay quiet. “If you weren’t...” he said, motioning to her.

  Bobbie looked down at her nakedness, wondering what in the hell he was raving about. “Why I ought to...” Once again, he didn’t finish his sentence. He bent down to retrieve her clothes but he didn’t bother to hand them directly to her. Instead, he threw them on the desk next to her.

  “Get your ass dressed and get back to the house.” The words were forced out between his clenched teeth. He turned away so fast she wondered if he was disgusted by her presence or possibly her lack of dress.

  Hurt and angry, Bobbie dressed as quickly as possible, confused by his treatment of her. Had she imagined the heated look he’d given her after he’d removed her clothes? She felt ashamed and couldn’t stop the tears streaming down her cheeks. With as much dignity as possible, she slipped her shirt over her head, forgoing her bra altogether, stuffing it into her pocket instead.

  She wanted to die, but since it wasn’t likely that the ground would open up and swallow her whole, she decided the next best option was to make a hasty retreat. She watched Clay pacing back and forth, cursing and muttering. Without a word, Bobbie unlocked the door and left the office where she’d lost her virginity thinking it was a damned good thing she hadn’t also lost her heart.

  Chapter Six

  Clay ended the phone call feeling a bit ashamed at the relief that was coursing through his mind. He had just gotten off the phone with the bank manager who needed to go over some records with either himself or Chance. Clay saw it as an easy out and decided to attend the meeting himself. He needed time to think and a bit of business travel on behalf of the ranch was the perfect thing. He couldn’t get Bobbie’s face out of his mind. The way her body had moved beneath him haunted him every minute. The taste of her sweet nectar should be illegal, it was so wickedly good.

  He’d had a feeling she was innocent, but a virgin? At her age? Clay shook his head trying to clear the memory of how desolate Bobbie had looked when he’d run her out of the room. Ashamed at the way he’d treated her, Clay had headed back to the house only to find her bedroom door ti
ghtly closed.

  Taking the easy way out, the coward’s way, wasn’t normal for Clay but that was exactly what he’d done. The thought disgusted him. Cursing himself for the fool he was, Clay headed for the coffee pot.

  “I’m surprised Bobbie hasn’t come down yet,” Chance said, giving Clay a look that made him uncomfortable.

  “It’s still dark out, why would she?” countered Clay.

  Clay poured himself a cup of coffee and sat across the table from Chance. “She usually comes down before now, grabs something quick and heads back up to her room.”

  Clay scowled. He’d never noticed that Bobbie awoke so early and wondered why she did. She worked long, hard days, sometimes indoors but most often lately, she stayed in the stables and never complained. Now Clay wanted to know everything about her. She was a mystery and it bothered him that she’d never confided in him. Of course, he hadn’t been the most hospitable person early on.

  Clay decided that the best defense against his nosy brother was to head out. He stood from his seated position, grabbed his hat of the peg by the back door and then turned to Chance. “I’ll be back tonight or tomorrow morning at the very latest. Call if you need anything,” He called over his shoulder to Chance, as he exited the door.

  “We’ll do. You take care,” Chance replied.

  Guilt assaulted him as he all but fled the ranch before dawn. He would only be gone for the day, possibly overnight, but it would give him time to get things into perspective.

  * * * *

  It was only a three-hour drive, but his business meeting would last most of the afternoon, so Clay settled into his seat, enjoying the drive while listening to soft country music. But not thirty minutes later, he figured he must be turning into a pussy-whipped man because this morning he couldn’t wait to get away from the ranch, and now that he was gone, he couldn’t wait to get home. Bobbie had gotten under his skin and even miles away, he couldn’t stop thinking about her. “Go figure,” he mumbled aloud to himself.

  The afternoon passed quickly, his meeting went off without a hitch and before he knew it he was almost home. Throughout the day he’d replayed last night in his mind, trying to figure out how it impacted his future. And he kept coming to the same conclusion.

  He needed to marry Bobbie Carlington. It was the proper thing to do. The thing Clay’s old-fashioned values insisted upon.

  Clay would pop the question as soon as he got back to the ranch. No sense in waiting, he thought, as he pulled off the highway and headed down the long gravel road leading home. Within minutes he could see the house on the horizon, and noticed Bobbie’s car was parked in its usual spot. He’d no sooner gotten out of the truck when Mildred rushed to the door. Her face was pinched with worry, hands clasped tightly in front of her.

  Clay left his briefcase on the front seat and strode to the house as quickly as possible to see what was wrong.

  “Everything all right?” he asked, knowing damned well it wasn’t.

  Mildred was shaking her head before he finished the question. “I was hoping you were Rick,” she answered a bit hesitantly as she turned and headed toward the kitchen.

  Clay followed, his temper rising right along with worry. “Why, Mildred? Tell me what’s wrong.”

  “You’d better sit down, Clay.” His heart skittered to a halt at her ominous words. He automatically thought something had happened to his parents. Or maybe it was his father’s heart. After all, that was the reason his father had retired and left the running of the ranch to Clay. He readied himself for the blow to come.

  “Bobbie’s gone,” Mildred said, barely above a whisper.

  His mind didn’t grasp her meaning. What did she mean gone, he’d seen her car parked right outside. “Gone where?” he asked impatiently.

  “Um, well ... I’m not sure. I found a note this morning saying she was going to go riding, but she hadn’t returned by this afternoon. Chance rode out just a bit ago to look for her and Rick took the truck to check the boundary roads.”

  “She didn’t say where she was going?”

  Mildred shook her head as if she knew what was coming, and that words in Bobbie’s defense would do no good.

  “God dammit!” Clay roared. “What time?”

  “Not too long after you left.”

  “And she hasn’t been back to check in, in all that time?” Clay’s mind whirled at the thought. His emotions reeled from one extreme to the next. When he got his hands on her, he was either going to throttle her or hug her tight and never let her go. And the whole time, he silently prayed that she was okay.

  “No, but I’m sure they’ll be back real soon,” Mildred said in a falsely cheery voice that didn’t show on her strained face.

  * * * *

  Bobbie woke with a start, feeling the ground shake beneath her. For a hazy, sleep befuddled moment, she thought the movement of the ground beneath her was an earthquake. She didn’t actually know what an earthquake felt like, but she’d read about them and knew they were prevalent in California. This was different though; it was more like a rhythmic pounding that seemed to be getting closer.

  It took Bobbie a minute to figure out what it was and when she finally did, she scrambled to her feet and made a beeline straight for Lady. From the position of the sun, Bobbie knew it was early evening and that she was in deep shit.

  Evidently her pity party had turned into an all day event and her nap had stretched to several hours. It had felt good to get away, to spend a day alone with no one to hound her, no work or studying. “I guess that’s over,” she mused wryly as the horse galloping toward her finally became clear in the distance.

  The rider sat tall in the saddle, causing Bobbie’s heart to pound furiously in her chest. She knew without a doubt that if the rider was Clay there was going to be hell to pay for her absence. Her hands shook with the knowledge of how angry he was going to be. While at the same time, it angered her to think that he would act as if he cared when he obviously didn’t.

  His abrupt departure early that morning proved beyond a shadow of a doubt to Bobbie that Clay had gotten what he wanted from her. He obviously had no further use for a wild redhead with a plump figure. She’d already made up her mind that she wouldn’t let his callous behavior get to her.

  She only had one more lesson in her accounting course to complete; then she could schedule the final test. She’d been studying for the test for weeks and was confident she would pass. As soon as she did, she’d find a job in town and leave the Lazy B.

  The thought made her frown just as it had earlier. She didn’t want to leave the Lazy B because, despite the short amount of time she'd spent on the ranch, it had already begun to feel like home. It had since her very first day there. And working day in and day out with the folks on the ranch had made it feel even more so.

  It was the first time she’d had friends or felt safe since her mother’s death, not counting Mac, but if she stayed she’d be selling herself short. She didn’t want a husband and she certainly had no plans to become the property of an arrogant cowboy. Even though the thought of leaving the Lazy B made her sad, she would have to do it, or take the chance of being smothered by a man who didn’t want anything more than to dominate her.

  As the rider drew closer, Bobbie released an audible sigh of relief when she recognized Chance. He reigned in the large Paint he was riding and dismounted in one fluid motion. He was at her side before she knew it.

  “Are you okay?” he asked, looking her over from head to toe.

  “I’m fine, Chance, and I’m sorry I’m so late. I needed time to think and I must have fallen asleep,” she sheepishly motioned to the flattened grass under the copse of trees.

  Chance chuckled and then, with a conspiratorial wink, said. “Well, if we hurry we’ll probably make it back to the ranch before Clay gets back.”

  Bobbie’s sigh of relief that she might miss Clay’s wrath had Chance laughing outright. She could only imagine what Clay would have done had it been him that had come l
ooking for her instead of Chance.

  When Chance finally got his laughter under control, he turned to Bobbie. “You sure everything is all right?”

  “Yeah, I’m sure. I’ve just got a lot on my mind,” she said. When he kept watching her she shook her head. “I’ll explain another day, Chance. Right now I think we ought to head back.”

  Bobbie and Chance mounted their horses and headed back toward the house. They had just reached an area where the sprawling white ranch house was coming into view when they noticed him. The closer Clay’s black stallion came, the further Bobbie’s heart sank. He sat ramrod straight astride his horse. His commanding gaze was disturbingly intense and she knew she was in trouble. No amount of explaining would be enough for him.

  Darting a pleading look to Chance, Bobbie reined Lady in and stopped. Not knowing what to do made her all the more nervous. She was well aware that she had been wrong to go off alone, but she hadn’t counted on falling asleep. At the time she left, Bobbie had only planned on being gone for an hour or so. Knowing that excuse would get her nowhere with Clay, she did the only thing she could think of, she stayed where she was and hoped for the best.

  He was mad as hell, if the muscle twitching in his jaw was a clue; his determined face set in grim lines. There was no sign of the passionate man she had given her innocence to the day before. The man before her was unbending and set in his ways. She just hoped she would be able to talk herself out of whatever he had planned for her. Or at the very least, she hoped Chance would intervene and act as a buffer.

  Bobbie watched in morbid fascination as Clay turned to Chance. “You can go back to the house now. I need to have a talk with Bobbie.” His voice was astonishingly calm. That alone sent goose bumps skittering up Bobbie’s spine. She wasn’t sure if it was from fear or anticipation, but she was betting that soon fear would win hands down.

  Bobbie, hoping to gain a bit of time to let Clay cool down said, “That’s okay, why don’t we all go back together?” Her voice quivered. She cleared her throat and with a nonchalance she didn’t feel, added. “That way I’ll be able to get cleaned up. I’ll explain everything at dinner.”