by BJ Wane
“Feel free to do that again.”
A laugh burst from Greg as he drawled, “Wrong play, partner.”
Turning back to the game, Kelsey didn’t say or do anything to retaliate as he sank two balls, tied up the score then missed the eleven. Desperate to deny her the winning shot, he leaned on his cue stick and tried to catch her off guard and ease his conscience by stating, “It’s nothing personal you know, my reasons for wanting to keep my distance.”
She jerked and glared at him. “I never said it was. Trust me, I don’t want to be here anymore than you want the responsibility of having me around.” As if that statement bothered her more than it did him, she bent and made a clean shot, nicely sinking the last ball and then, without flaw, pocketed the eight.
After deciding it was no fun pursuing or even teasing a man who made it clear he had no interest in having her around, Kelsey pouted and stayed away from both men for the next few days. It wasn’t worth the frustration and hurt to continue flirting and poking at either Greg or Devin when neither shied away from telling her exactly how they felt about her presence. Granted, Greg had been friendly and welcoming, at least ten times more so than Devin, but it wasn’t enough to ease her unhappiness over being here in the first place, or to assuage her hurt feelings. When not working, she found little to occupy her time since nothing about the ranch appealed to her except the owners.
Quit being a wuss and get over it already. Switching gears, she focused on her work and the two new clients her boss had sent her this morning. Along with the fresh breeze wafting in from the open window, the faint echo of lowing cattle, occasional high pitch of a neighing horse and voices of camping guests rousing themselves reached her ears. The sounds were vastly different from the constant busy clatter of her downtown office and loud bustling activity and traffic from the streets of Philly that filtered through the closed windows, but they didn’t bother her as much as earlier in the week. Sometime in the past six days she seemed to have acclimated herself to her surroundings, if not to her hosts. Host, she corrected. As far as she knew, Devin was still none too happy about Greg’s decision to agree to Jordan’s request to offer her a temporary haven while they continued to investigate the man who attacked her.
When her attention wandered to the activities outside for the third time, Kelsey blew out a frustrated breath and pushed away from the desk. Maybe a sandwich and walk would clear her head and help keep her focused when she returned. Padding into the kitchen, she tried not to take the silence of the huge house to heart as she rummaged in the refrigerator for fixings for a sandwich. For four days she had stayed to herself, keeping to her room until she saw through the window both men leaving the house to attend to their agenda for the day. She’d taken advantage of Greg’s offer to raid the kitchen any time she didn’t want the buffet and had gotten by with making sandwiches or eggs once they were gone. Each night, Greg had rapped on her door when he’d come in, asking if she was okay or needed anything before calling out goodnight. Both men seemed content with her staying to herself.
“I don’t care,” she muttered as she slapped together a ham sandwich, grabbed a bottle of water and stepped outside. Settling in a rocker on the porch, she watched guests gather around the largest corral as Devin opened the gate and Greg herded a young calf inside. Eating her sandwich, she watched as Greg loosened a coiled rope, controlling his horse with his heavy thighs and knees. She envied the ease with which he sat the stallion and was surprised by the desire to master the feat of riding that well herself.
“Oh!” Kelsey sat up as Greg twirled the noosed end of the rope over his head while chasing the calf around until he got close enough to rope him. She groaned around a bite and then gulped a long drink of cold water as her needy body got all pumped up watching his agile leap off Cherokee. He controlled the bawling, none-too-happy calf by maintaining a tight, two-handed grip on the rope that emphasized the strength of his arms and legs. Devin entered to lend him a hand and she tried not to drool at the way their chaps framed their pelvises, the sexy leather wear drawing her eyes to their crotches and butts, depending on which way they turned.
I need to get laid, scratch this itch that started when I was dumb enough to venture out on that balcony and got stirred up from the eyeful I got. Just eyeing her reluctant hosts proved to be enough to keep it going. Padding back inside, she figured her prospects of getting her lust sated were slim to none.
Kelsey worked the rest of the afternoon and then went for a walk after telling Tom where she was headed. She stayed gone a little longer than usual and by the time she came strolling out of the woods, the evening dinner buffet had opened and she saw several people strolling toward the social hall laughing, their faces flushed from whatever activities they’d participated in and enjoyed that day. The appeal of this place still eluded her, and even though she wouldn’t mind hanging out with others tonight, she trotted up the steps to the house to spend another evening feeling sorry for herself. There were times, like this, when her stubbornness irritated even her. Still, if her self-imposed solitude made Greg and Devin feel bad, it might be worth it.
When she wasn’t tired by nine-thirty, she slipped on her silky, comfortable nightshirt, pulled her hair up in a sloppy ponytail, donned her magnetic blue-framed reading glasses and settled in front of the computer to work on her new accounts. Neither client had kept detailed books when they’d started their small business and going through the numbers was proving to be a tedious task.
It was still shy of ten o’clock when Kelsey heard the guys come in, their deep voices drawing goosebumps on her arms and distracting her from the notes she was jotting down. Instead of hearing them say goodnight to each other within a few minutes of entering the house, their low murmurs resonated down the hall from the den. Curiosity as well as annoyance that they seemed content with letting her be, prompted her to check out what was keeping them up later tonight. Slipping her pencil behind her ear, she rose and tiptoed down the hall, pausing around the corner to stay out of sight, but close enough now to listen in on the conversation. Devin’s irritated voice reached her first, his words increasing her interest.
“Won’t Jed be here? And she seems content staying to herself.”
“That’s bothering you, too, isn’t it?” Greg drawled.
“Nope,” he denied so fast Kelsey winced. “It’s what I wanted from the start. I’m glad she reneged on the bet, too.”
“Uh, huh, sure you are. Cut her some slack, Dev. She’s not happy being away from everything she’s known her whole life. I told you, I set her straight on the consequences for pushing us and she’s been fine ever since.”
“You didn’t see her eating the other night,” Devin muttered. Her lips curled at his disgruntled tone. “I bet she’s plotting.”
“And I bet you want her to keep her distance because you’re worried you won’t be able to resist her.”
Greg’s remark perked her up until Devin delivered his succinct reply with a derisive scoff. “There’s not a woman out there I can’t resist.”
“If you say so. Anyway, Jed’s brother fell and he’s already left for the weekend. I said I would stay home. Go on to the club, if you want,” Greg urged.
Club? The word renewed her inquisitiveness in their conversation and she halted in turning to go back to her room to listen further.
“And come home to you brooding because you were stuck babysitting? No thanks. The Barn will be there next week, along with all the willing submissives.”
Kelsey gritted her teeth at the term ‘babysitting’ but her irritation took a backseat to the quick leap in her pulse upon hearing the term ‘submissive’. Were they talking about a kink club, like Dominion? Before she could give in to the temptation to come around the corner and ask them point blank what they meant, Greg sighed and called out in a louder tone, “What are you doing, Kelsey?”
“Eavesdropping,” she answered without hesitation, choosing honesty as she strolled into the den heedless of her skimpy night
shirt until both men’s eyes zeroed in on her bare legs. A thrill whipped through her system as they eyed the outline of her turgid nipples pressing against the silky material. She twiddled her thumbs, standing in indecision as their slow perusal set up a low hum of arousal between her legs. Heat flared in their eyes as they reached her face, making her wonder if those hot looks stemmed from the view her see-through, thigh-skimming sheath offered or if they got off on the disheveled, geeky accountant appearance. She was more than willing to accept either explanation.
“What’s The Barn?” she managed to ask as her toes curled into the thick, braided area rug.
Devin’s dark brows snapped down in a frown. “None of your business. Go to bed.”
That got her dander back up. Placing her fists on her hips, she narrowed her eyes. “I’m not a child to be sent to bed because the grownups have secrets.”
“Then don’t act like one by listening in on conversations and you won’t be treated like one,” Devin countered with a cool gaze.
Ignoring him, Kelsey took a step toward Greg, who was seated opposite Devin on the matching sofa. “I’m going bonkers here. Is this club in town? Can I go?”
“No.”
“I’m not talking to you,” she retorted without looking around at Devin.
“No. The Barn isn’t a place for you, little bit. Behave and I’ll take you into Billings on Sunday. Most of this week’s guests are checking out in the morning and the new ones won’t start arriving until Sunday afternoon.” His green eyes slid around her to his partner. “Devin can stay here and welcome them without me.”
“Or, you can let me come with you to this club and I’ll help greet your new guests on Sunday.” Considering their dominant personalities, those swats Greg had given her and the term ‘submissives’ she’d heard, Kelsey took a stab in the dark and surprised them by fudging the truth and saying with a shrug, “What’s the big deal? I’ve been in clubs before, including ones that cater to submissives.” Turning her head, she leveled a pointed glare on Devin.
The two of them shared a startled look before Devin’s jaw went taut and his midnight eyes bored into her. “You have sexually submissive experience?”
His soft tone held a hint of menace that elicited a cold shiver and Kelsey hoped she wasn’t biting off more than she could handle. It was obvious the McAllisters had left off telling them what she’d been doing when the assault had taken place, maybe even the type of establishment she’d been hired to work for that night. She saw this as an opportunity to not only alleviate her boredom, but possibly get this itch scratched her hosts were responsible for. If neither man wanted her, maybe she could hook up with someone who did, someone willing to answer the questions that had started that fateful night and had increased since finding herself drawn to these two virtual strangers. And then she might make it through the next three weeks without going stir crazy or lust crazy.
“Not much, but some,” she hedged, thinking observing should count for something.
“How much is some?” Greg wanted to know.
Devin saved her from lying again by coming to his feet, exclaiming, “You’re not seriously thinking of agreeing, are you?”
Greg stood, his eyes going from Devin to Kelsey. “Go on to bed, Kelsey. We’ll let you know in the morning what we decide.”
Thinking she better not push her luck, she nodded, pivoted and returned to her room. The pool of nervous sweat at the base of her spine dried as she slid into bed with different sexual scenarios flitting through her head, all of them with her paired with either Greg or Devin at a kink club similar to Dominion.
“No fucking way,” Devin snapped as soon as Kelsey left the room.
Greg was reluctant to grant Kelsey’s wish, but not dead set against it. The girl pulled at something inside him, and he suspected it was the same for Devin. The sadness in her eyes when she’d asked him why Devin didn’t like her still bothered him, and the taunting grin and comeback she’d given his partner when he tried to distract her at pool still drew his smile. He thought his cock would burst through his zipper when she came around the corner wearing nothing but that peach slip of a nightie and a pair of bright blue glasses. With her hair pulled up and that pencil nestled behind her ear, the fantasies rushing through his mind couldn’t be stopped. Still, taking her up on her teasing, sexual innuendos wouldn’t be wise. Desirable, hell yes, but not a good idea.
“Why? I saw a hint of submissiveness when I swatted her ass, but didn’t want to acknowledge it, let alone mention it to you. If she’s been to a club, nothing at The Barn will surprise her. She can come as a guest, just to hang out, not play, and it’ll get her away from here for a few hours and hopefully appease her for a while.”
Devin shook his head. “It’s a risk. One, I’m not willing to take.”
“What risk?” Greg returned, exasperated with the rigid line in the sand Devin had drawn over Kelsey’s presence at the ranch. “We’ll be right there, with friends. No one at the club would hurt her, and she’ll be so happy she’s going, she’ll behave and not risk our wrath, or retaliation by not abiding by the rules.”
“You don’t believe that any more than I do. She didn’t even blush standing in front of us with her hard nipples on display,” Devin retorted.
A slow grin curved his lips and Greg couldn’t resist nettling him. “Don’t forget the cute, sexy accountant look. I loved the glasses.”
Devin shrugged but Greg caught the twitch of his mouth before he stopped himself and said, “I like your first idea better. Take her into Billings on Sunday. I’ll handle the tour group checking in.” Kicking back the last swallow of his beer, Devin walked past him without another word.
Greg waited until he tossed his empty bottle into the recycle bin and started toward the stairs before risking his long-time friend’s anger by announcing, “I’m going to let her come along. Deal with it.” Devin’s curses followed him as Greg went into his room praying Kelsey didn’t give his partner cause to say I told you so.
Chapter 6
I’m a lousy judge of men. The heated interest Kelsey thought she detected last night must have been an illusion because tonight, neither Greg nor Devin demonstrated an ounce of interest in her, not even a hint of male appreciation or lust. But she refused to allow their indifference to ruin her fun, or her plans for tonight. Just because their nonstop lecture during the first fifteen minutes of the drive left her ears ringing from all the rules they’d laid out for her to follow proved they harbored no lust for her whatsoever, didn’t mean she couldn’t enjoy tonight. If they didn’t want her, she intended to hook up with someone who did, regardless of their number one rule – she was a guest, allowed to observe and nothing more. She refrained from glaring at either man each time one added a stipulation to the evening. Hell, if she abided by their list she might as well have stayed at the house. She didn’t say that though, or grumble or complain. Nope, she sat docilely between the two men in the front of Greg’s truck, dwarfed by their size and loving it, and kept her mouth shut except to answer ‘I understand’ when asked.
Every time one of them shifted his denim-clad leg alongside hers, her pussy clenched, the response irritating her. The slutty bitch needed to focus on something else, maybe someone else soon or she would go nuts. When the lectures stopped, she looked up at Devin and asked about the club’s rule limiting everyone to two drinks, wishing his bulging bicep wasn’t resting against her arm. It was hard enough to keep focused being sandwiched between their wide shoulders encased in tightly stretched T-shirts that emphasized their thick muscles. “Why do they limit everyone’s drinking? Doesn’t the club make a large profit off alcohol sales like other clubs?” She realized her mistake when he frowned and a suspicious look entered his dark eyes.
“That’s standard practice for any gathering of BDSM players. Didn’t your introduction to the club you went to cover that?”
“Yes.” She twirled her thumbs and gazed out the windshield. “I forgot is all. The first time was so
overwhelming, I confess I didn’t pay much attention to the rules.” That, at least, was the truth.
“Just make sure you do tonight,” Greg stated as he turned off the highway onto a narrow, tree-lined bumpy road. “I don’t want to regret giving in to you and give Devin a reason to say ‘I told you so’.”
“No,” she murmured, “I wouldn’t want that either.”
Greg sighed and squeezed her thigh. “Relax. The Barn’s rules don’t require high protocol, such as addressing every Dom with Master or Sir, but there are a few who will insist. Since you don’t know anyone, play it safe and be respectful to everyone.”
“Got it. This road is kind of spooky.” The headlights offered the only illumination until they came to a clearing and outdoor floodlights lit the double-door entry to the two-story converted barn. The wide upper window above the doors glowed in a dimmer, amber shade.
Greg rolled to a stop in the already crowded gravel parking lot and Devin opened his door, his tone dry, as he glanced back at her as he got out, “Maybe you’ll find what’s inside spooky as well and won’t want to return.” Shutting the door, he strolled inside, not bothering to wait for them.
Kelsey couldn’t hide the hurt in her voice as she whispered, “He really doesn’t like me, does he?”
