Spurred (Steele Ranch 1)

“You’re here for a break or permanently?” I asked, my arm over the back of the booth again, my fingers stroking her shoulder. “You have a job, a house, a life in Pennsylvania to go back to. Or are you trying to start fresh, somewhere new where you can give your sister room to take care of her own problems?”

The idea of her returning to it didn’t sit well, especially if her sister got out of rehab and returned to drug use. Since I’d arranged her plane ticket, I knew Kady was staying for most of the summer. We had time to work on her, to see that being with us was better than anything back east.

She looked down at the table, then glanced up at me. “Yes, I wanted a break. Until I arrived, I didn’t really believe all this was true, that there really was a father I’d never known existed, a Montana ranch. It’s like out of a movie or something. I’m just a simple schoolteacher.”

She was anything but simple, but I wasn’t going to say that now. It was time to listen.

“You heard part of the call. With Beth and all, I just wanted to escape.”

“And now that you believe the ranch is real, that you’re a millionaire?”

She rolled her eyes and gave a wobbly smile. “See? Unbelievable. Me, a millionaire.” She laughed then, still overwhelmed by the idea.

Cord leaned in. “What if we told you we were interested in you, that we find you beautiful? Perfect.”

She blushed and looked away. “I’d think you’re crazy. Look at me.”

“We are,” I said, my voice calm. Even. Slow. My fingers kept up their gentle caress of her silky skin.

We waited, let the silence speak for itself.

After a minute, she looked up, set her fingers on the edge of the table so those pretty lacquered nails showed. “So what, you want a…fling with me? Both of you?”

“Both of us, yes,” Cord said. “A fling? Hell no.”

“Then what is it that you want? My inheritance?” Her eyes widened as if she hadn’t thought about the words until they popped out. “God, I’m clueless about life out here, but I’m not gullible.”

Cord’s eyes narrowed and his jaw clenched. “You don’t know us, Kady, so we’ll give you a pass. We’re not here with you to get our hands on your inheritance. I don’t give a shit about it and I’m sure Riley wishes Aiden Steele was still alive so he didn’t have to be neck deep in executor shit. But know this, if you insult us or yourself again, I’ll take you over my knee and spank that gorgeous ass until it’s as pink as your nail polish.”

Her mouth fell open. “I didn’t—”

“You did. You insulted us not only when you thought we were gold diggers, but also when you thought we didn’t know our minds enough to think you’re beautiful.”

Her mouth snapped closed, and she looked between the two of us.

“So you don’t want my money. You want what, exactly?”

“You.” We both said the one word at the same time. We looked at her with laser focus. There was no way she could misinterpret. That she had any doubt that we wanted anyone else. Ever.

“Beneath us, between us,” I told her. “Riding me while Cord watches. On your knees before us. We want to fuck you, Kady, make you forget everything but how we make you feel. To be the center of our world.”

She stared right back, licked her lips as her cheeks flushed. I could see the frantic thrum of her pulse in her neck, saw the way the swells of her breasts rose and fell with her quick breaths. Fuck, her nipples hardened beneath her dress before my eyes.

As for me, my cock was like a lead pipe in my pants. I wanted to do everything I’d said, and then some.

Clearing her throat, she said, “I’m no longer hungry. I think I’d like you to take me back to the ranch now.”

I glanced at Cord, who looked as disappointed as I felt. We’d blown it. We’d totally fucked up. Hell, I’d spooked her with my blunt talk. It was all the truth and only a small portion of all the dirty things I wanted to do to her, but that didn’t mean I should have said them aloud. She’d been looking for gentlemen and I’d blown it.

Neither of us were into romance or candles or moonlight shit. We’d come on too fucking strong. Hard. Rough. Just looking at her, seeing the dainty little pearls in her ears, the glossy pink lipstick, the summery dress. She was all lush, soft woman. Our rough talk and bold behavior wasn’t what she wanted, and we’d just scared her away.

I nodded once, stood and held out my hand to her to help her from the booth. Cord tossed a few bills on the table to cover the tab as we followed her out of the restaurant.

Great. Just fucking great. We had to watch the incredible sway of her lush ass and could do nothing about it. She wasn’t interested. It was over.

4

KADY