Her Rancher's Caress: (Taken by Cowboys: Part 3) A Billionaire Western Romance Read online

  She felt her pulse thrumming in her wrists while perspiration bloomed at the back of her neck. She had never felt so agitated. “Get it together,” she whispered to herself, rubbing her thighs as she willed herself to get up when what she really wanted was for both Spencer and Nate to come back for way more than five minutes.

  But that was crazy. They had staged this contest in order to make it easy for her to choose one or the other. Now it was time to make that choice.

  Chapter 4

  Spencer found Nate by the horse pasture, one booted foot propped up against the railing as he leaned his head into his hand, looking out at the horses from underneath the rim of his hat. He loved those horses since he was a child. Spencer felt a twinge of affection for his best friend as he approached him.

  “Howdy, partner,” he said as he approached. The greeting had become a joke between the two men, who had forged their friendship over cubicle walls in a Lower Manhattan office building. Their fortunes had taken a turn—too much speculation, too much hunger, too much greed—and they had decided to leave the finance game for good and come out West. A little investment and time had born Getaway Guest Ranch, and here they were, three years later, far more cowboy than corporate.

  “Howdy,” Nate returned. He continued to stare into the pasture.

  Spencer propped a foot on the railing and stood next to his friend. Neither spoke for a few moments.

  “I don’t know what got into Oreo yesterday,” Nate said finally. “She’s usually so good with beginners. I got Jess to agree to ride her, and the next thing I know, the mare’s broken into a trot—almost a gallop—and Jess is practically on her ass.”

  Spencer had to laugh. “Horses are temperamental beasts, no matter how well we think we’re controlling them.”

  Nate nodded. “I’m just afraid I’ve scared her for good. It’d be a shame for her to never truly experience the joy of riding.” His brow knitted.

  “She’s a tough girl,” Spencer said. “I’m sure she’ll be back in the saddle soon enough.”

  “I hope so,” Nate said.

  They were quiet again. Spencer looked at Nate’s face. His usual grin was gone, and he wore a much more serious expression than Spencer was used to.

  “You really like her, don’t you, Nate?” he said.

  Nate finally turned to meet his eye. “I really do,” he said. “I know you think it’s just me wanting to take what’s yours for the sake of having it, but I told you that’s not true. Maybe I shouldn’t have gotten so physical so fast, but I just feel drawn to her, Spencer.”

  Spencer’s throat became tight. Wasn’t that how he’d described his feelings for Jess after their first kiss by the campfire—that he felt drawn to her?

  “I get it,” he said. “I know what you’re talking about, because I feel the same.”

  “It’s not just that she’s beautiful,” Nate continued, as if he hadn’t heard Spencer. He was looking out into the pasture again. “She’s smart, she’s funny, she doesn’t seem to care a whit what people think. She’s part flower, part firework. I just…” He trailed off. Then he turned to Spencer again. “I can’t resist her.” His face was pained.

  It moved Spencer to see his best friend speaking so passionately about someone. He hadn’t ever heard Nate sound so smitten. The problem was that he felt exactly the same way. He wanted Jess with every ounce of his being. But he couldn’t be the one to decide whether he or Spencer was worthy of her.

  “That choice is hers,” he said out loud.

  ***

  Jess looked around nervously as she entered the dining lodge. She had left the tent after the last event of the contest and gone back to her cabin, telling Spencer and Nate that she needed some time to herself. But would she be able to keep her cool at dinner with the two of them and the rest of the ranch? She never had been good at keeping her poker face. What if she gave everything away?

  But Spencer and Nate were nowhere in sight. They weren’t at their usual table, nor were they milling around chatting up the other guests. Trying not to look too obvious as she scanned the room, she seated herself, feeling simultaneously relieved and disappointed.

  “Hey, Jess!” a cheerful woman’s voice called to her. She looked up to see a pretty blue-eyed woman in a red checked shirt and jeans, her blond hair pulled into a ponytail. It was Caroline, Spencer and Nate’s assistant.

  “Hey, Caroline!” she said. “How’s it going?” Jess was happy to see her; she was the closest thing to a girlfriend Jess had out West.

  “This seat taken?” Caroline asked.

  “By you!” Jess responded.

  Caroline settled down next to her and surveyed the spread in front of them hungrily. “Gosh, this looks good. I could eat a horse.”

  As usual, the wooden tables were groaning with platters of hearty grub: fried chicken, beef tips in gravy, roasted potatoes, green beans, biscuits, salad… Jess felt her stomach rumble. She may have eaten a big lunch, but that didn’t mean she couldn’t put away an equally healthy dinner.

  “I’m with you, girlfriend,” Jess said.

  “What have you been up to all day?” Caroline said, offering her the platter of chicken. “I didn’t see hide nor hair of you!”

  “Oh, not too much,” Jess said as casually as she could, picking up the tongs and setting a drumstick on her plate. “I decided to take it easy today.”

  “You missed a lovely hike,” Caroline said, selecting a chicken breast. Jess dug into the platter of potatoes and passed it to Caroline. “I led a group of guests to the falls. We went up the rock scramble, saw tons of wildflowers, and some of us even took a dip in the spring!”

  “If I had known skinny-dipping was a part of the trip, I might have come!” Jess said.

  Caroline laughed. “Hey, now, we kept it modest,” Caroline said. “Well, some of us. Mr. Greenblatt managed to lose his shorts. Luckily his wife found them before we had to trek back down.”

  “Thanks goodness for that!” Jess said.

  “No kidding. Wouldn’t be the first time I’ve seen an older gentleman lose his knickers here at Getaway, but I can’t say I relish the prospect of seeing another one,” Caroline returned drily. Jess laughed.

  At this point both women’s plates were heaping with food. As they dug in, Jess caught a flash off of Caroline’s finger—a wedding band. It was the first time she’d noticed it.

  “I didn’t realize you were a married woman!” she said. “Where’s your husband?”

  “He works in town,” Caroline responded. “He runs his own auto repair shop—the best one in Big Horn.”

  “How long have you two been hitched?” she asked.

  “Going on four years. Doesn’t feel like it!” Caroline laughed. “We were high school sweethearts, truth be told.”

  “That’s adorable!” she exclaimed between bites of her biscuit.

  “It kind of was,” Caroline admitted. “Mike was always so good at fixing cars. That’s how he wooed me—took my old hand-me-down Honda Civic and made her purr like a kitten. And me too, in the backseat.”

  Jess burst out laughing. “I hope to have the chance to meet him sometime,” she said.

  “I’m sure you will!” Caroline said, taking a sip of her beer. “What about you? It’s hard to believe a pretty girl like yourself wouldn’t get courted by every New York bachelor there was.”

  Jess blushed. Caroline was sweet, but a little naive. “That’s nice of you to say. I’m not currently in a relationship. Dating in New York isn’t for the faint of heart.”

  Caroline frowned. “What do you mean?”

  Jess thought about it. “Well, it’s easy to find an asshole to have fun with,” she said. “But it’s hard to find one who will stick around after the next bit of fun comes walking past.”

  “Ouch,” Caroline said. She shook her head. “I couldn’t take that.”

  Jess played with her napkin. “There is one man, though, who I’ve had on my mind,” she said slowly. “Well, actually, two.”<
br />
  “Is that right!” Caroline said, looking up from her salad. “I knew you had to have suitors after you.”

  Jess smiled as she tried to keep her heart rate under control. She knew she should be careful about what she said, but she felt like she needed a female confidante. She hardly knew how to make sense of the situation she was in.

  “You could say that,” Jess said. “The thing is, I really like these two guys equally. They’re different. One is sweet and serious, the other is kind of goofy and fun. But I’m starting to have feelings for both of them. And they’re both so sexy, Caroline.” She sighed.

  Caroline looked thoughtful. “That sure is a fix,” she said finally.

  Jess laughed. “No kidding.”

  The table was being cleared to make room for dessert. Jess thanked the waitress who took her empty plate. She didn’t feel any closer to resolving her dilemma.

  But the thing that Caroline said next surprised her. “Why do you have to choose?”

  “What do you mean, why do I have to choose?” Jess exclaimed. “Are you saying I should choose both of them?”

  “Well, I could see how you could run into problems there,” Caroline said. “But for now, you can’t deny your feelings. I think the oldest advice in the book still holds true: follow your heart and the rest will come.”

  Caroline made it sound so simple. And wasn’t it? Maybe she was making it too complicated. After all, her heart was calling her to both Spencer and Nate. She had tried to resist, but it clearly wasn’t working. She wanted to explore her feelings for both of them. No amount of talking would talk her out of that.

  By this time, the dinner dishes had been replaced with pitchers of coffee, plates of pecan pie and dishes of peach cobbler.

  “In the meantime,” Caroline said, reaching for a plate and breaking Jess’s thoughts, “have a piece of pie.”

  “At least there are still some easy decisions in life,” Jess said and grabbed the spatula.

  Chapter 5

  When Jess got back to her cabin after dinner, she found another note under the door. She picked it up with trembling hands.

  “Come to the barn where you saw me buck and spin. I’ll find a new way to make you grin.”

  Her face broke into a smile. Damned if the note wasn’t working already. But who had written the note: Spencer or Nate? She turned it over. Again, no signature. What were they going to do—compete for her affection on the mechanical bull again? That didn’t seem likely.

  She went to the bathroom and looked in the mirror. She was surprised by how pleased she was at the sight. She was already a few shades bronzer than she’d been when she arrived—though that wasn’t hard—and more than that, she looked relaxed. Happy.

  She remembered Caroline’s words. Follow your heart and the rest will come.

  “I’m following,” she said out loud to her reflection.

  ***

  When she arrived at the barn where they’d started off the contest earlier that day, she found it dark, the door locked.

  “Hey, what’s this about?” she mumbled. Then she noticed a warm glow coming from the structure next door—a smaller barn she hadn’t been inside.

  She went to the barn, her heart beginning to hammer. The door was slightly ajar. She pulled it open and took a tentative step inside. She stopped short and gasped.

  The barn was lit entirely by candles, hundreds of which were balanced on its rafters and windowsills. The flickering flames cast a warm glow over the bales of hay that were stacked against the farthest wall and the straw-covered floor. Standing a few feet away from her was Spencer, wearing only jeans and a cowboy hat—just like in her dream, she realized with a jolt.

  “Do you like it?” he asked, taking a step towards her. He was strikingly handsome in the candlelight, his well-developed pecs and abs rippling.

  “Oh, Spencer,” she breathed. “Did you do this—for me?”

  “Who else would I have done it for?” he asked. He came towards her and drew her into his arms, gently closing the door behind her.

  “Remember that promise I made to make love to you and do it right?” he asked, his voice low. She felt his warm breath on her neck and shivered.

  “I remember,” she whispered. She could feel herself melting against his muscled body.

  “I’m going to do it right now,” he said, running his lips gently down her throat. She arched her head back and moaned. His touch was light—excruciatingly light—and it stirred her deep inside. His words excited her beyond belief.

  “But I’d be lying if I said this was only my doing,” he said.

  Her pulse quickened. Did he mean…

  “He had a little help,” came a voice behind her, along with a gentle puff of night air. She turned around to see Nate pushing the door shut behind him, also wearing only jeans and a cowboy hat. She felt her knees go weak.

  Spencer was still holding her close, his hands now on her hips. Nate approached her, coming so close that he was almost touching her. Her breathing was getting heavier and heavier.

  There was a moment of silence in which she was acutely aware of every tiny sensation—the air rushing in and out of her heaving lungs, Spencer’s chest against her back and hands on her hips, Nate’s bright green eyes boring into hers as the heat of his body washed over her.

  “We realized today after the contest that we weren’t being fair to you,” Nate said. “By asking you to make a choice between the two of us, we weren’t respecting what you really want—which is both of us.”

  Her breath hitched. All at once, Nate’s lips were on hers, his hands in her hair, and he was kissing her passionately. From behind her, Spencer had placed his lips on the crook of her neck, one hand drifting down to the curve of her ass while the other snaked up her ribs.

  She cried out, breaking the kiss. The sudden explosion of pleasure was too much to bear, setting a fire ablaze in her abdomen.

  “Spencer…Nate…I don’t know…,” she said breathlessly. Her heart was beating so hard she thought it might explode.

  “It’s okay, Jess,” Spencer whispered in her ear. “We want to please you. Won’t you let us?”

  Part of her wanted desperately to give in to the desire that was awake and screaming within her, to sink into the kisses and lose herself to the touch. But part of her didn’t know if she could stand it.

  “What if this is a bad idea?” she said. She looked at Nate, then turned her head to look at Spencer. “What if we regret this?”

  “Does this feel good to you, Jess?” Nate asked, taking her hands into his own.

  Jess looked down. “Yes,” she whispered.

  “Do you want this?” he asked, gripping them with more urgency.

  “Yes,” she whispered again.

  She felt Spencer’s lips lightly press against the back of her neck as his fingers ran gently up and down her sides. She squeezed her eyes shut.

  “Yes, I want this. I want you both. I want you to please me.” It came out in a gasp.

  Nate smiled as Spencer whispered, “Thank you, Jess,” in her ear.

  She closed her eyes. She didn’t know quite what she had just admitted to, but she knew she couldn’t turn back now. Her body wasn’t strong enough to resist the feelings that were coming at her from all sides. Every centimeter of her was alive with need.

  She felt Spencer’s hands guiding her to turn towards him. She obeyed them, her chest now flush with his. “That kiss from earlier today,” he said, bringing his hand to her cheek. “I can’t get it out of my head.”

  He tipped her face up towards his and she reached for his lips, wanting desperately to taste them. His lips were torturously light, barely grazing hers. He took his time deepening the kiss, drawing her in further and further. His tongue parted her lips and she reached hers eagerly into his mouth. She felt Nate pressing himself to her backside, his member already stiff, as he cupped the generous curves of her ass.

  She released a moan, breaking the kiss with Spencer and tipping h
er head back. She shuddered as his lips met her throat. She could feel herself dampening through her panties. Spencer’s hands moved to her rib cage, pulling her away from Nate and closer to him. Nate only pressed in harder, turning his head to nibble on the curve of her neck. Being this close to Spencer’s midsection, she realized with a pang of excitement that he was hard, too. Her breathing was getting heavier and heavier. Two of them…

  “Come here,” Spencer said huskily. He took her hand. Nate draped his arm around her hips and followed as Spencer led her to the back of the barn. She felt weak on her feet, but with the support of Spencer and Nate, she made it. The men pushed her up against the hay bale, its pieces of hay scratching lightly at her skin.

  “Is this okay, Jess?” Nate murmured.

  She could think of only one way to answer. “Undress me,” she commanded.

  Nate grabbed the hem of her tee shirt and pulled it up over her head while Spencer knelt below her and undid the button on her jeans, pulling them off her. She was wearing a black lace bra and panties, both so sheer that she could feel every tiny touch through them as if she were wearing nothing at all.

  All at once the men swapped places, with Spencer standing behind her and Nate kneeling in front of her, planting kisses up and down her bare legs. She felt herself tremble and once again wondered if her legs would give out on her.

  Spencer reached around and put his hands on her full breasts. “I love your breasts,” he breathed. “I love their shape, their weight, their feel.” She moaned with pleasure as he fondled her, his hands warm through the thin lace. She felt a release as he unhooked her bra. She shrugged it off, setting her breasts free.

  He pulled her towards him with sudden force. She gasped as she lost her footing, but the tumble was short. They landed on the soft pile of hay next to the bale, her back still pressed against his chest.

  She could feel his hardness through his jeans, so large and full. “Take them off,” she whispered.

  She felt him fumble with his belt buckle, arching her back to allow him to undo the clasp and zipper. Eagerly she helped him take them off. He was wearing nothing underneath. She settled back down onto him, feeling his muscular thighs rippling underneath hers. “Oh, Jess,” he breathed, running his hands up and down her sides. “You feel amazing.”