Rough in the Saddle (6 page)

Chapter
Nine

They
made their way into the stables, and the two mares that the brothers were
working on taming started going wild. Their mule, Odessa, was in a separate
stall, her jaw working as she
ate,
her big black eyes
content as she took everything in. Travis went over to Odessa and patted her on
the side.

“This
is our mule. She does the hauling of our supplies when we do cattle runs or do
hunting for the winter months. She’s a good girl, works hard, and definitely
earns her keep.” He looked over at Pearl and saw the way she was still twisting
her hands together. She’d been doing that the entire trek down to the stables
from the main house.

Yeah,
he didn’t have to be so lewd with her, but he’d been surprised as hell to see
her standing in his house, the woman that was supposed to be their cleaner and
cook. Hell, he hadn’t been able to stop thinking about her since last night,
and that was unusual for him. He’d immersed himself in work as soon as he got
back to the ranch, tried to put her behind him, but the scent of her had been
engrained in his head and he hadn’t been able to get rid of his damn hard-on
since leaving her.

“You
ever work on a ranch before, Pearl?”
Jace
asked her,
and Travis kept his focus on the woman that was driving him mad with need.

She
shook her head. “No. Back in the city I did advertising, worked in an office
all day, and wore skirts and blouses.”

Colton
snorted,
Jace
grinned, and Travis said nothing, just
stood there, imagining her in those tight little business outfits. He wasn’t
much for going into the city and dealing with the bullshit of the cars and
traffic, loud noises and pollution. He much preferred the solitary lifestyle he
chose to lead here in Granite, and it had served him well this entire time.

“You
can cook though, right? Clean?”
Jace
asked, and
Colton jabbed him in the gut with an elbow. “Man, ouch,”
Jace
said and rubbed his stomach.

She
smiled, cast a glance at Travis, and he felt his cock jerk when her smile faded
and her lips parted as she took in a deep breath. Yeah, she was just as
affected as he was, and damn if that wasn’t a heady sensation.

“I
can cook,” she said and smiled at his brothers.

He
could tell they liked her, but then again Pearl had this aura around her, this
personality that drew people in. Hell, it had been cone of the reasons he’d
been drawn to her. He’d seen her in that bar and felt this pull toward her. She
was sitting alone, not even caring that others were watching the newcomer in
town, and yet she held herself with assurance, with pride. She may have been
afraid, unsure of the situation and her surroundings, but she didn’t allow it
to shape her. He liked that in a person, loved that she could hold her own
emotionally and didn’t let things she wasn’t familiar with hold her back. Her
going to the bar alone was a small sampling of that.

There
were hardworking women in this town, ones that were just as stubborn and
strong-willed as any man he’d come across, but it wasn’t until he’d locked eyes
on Pearl last night that he felt drawn to her, and knew he had to have her.

“Come
on, we’ll show you the rest of the property that is within walking distance.”
He led them out of the stables, and he pointed out the property line, well, as
much as could be seen from their vantage point. Once back in the house
Jace
and Colton had to tend to one of the stallions that
had gotten loose in the west fields. Travis sat at the kitchen table, gestured
for Pearl to do the same, and for several seconds all they did was sit there
and watch each other.

“You
have a beautiful property.”

He
was leaning back in his seat, his arm slung over the back of it, and his other
resting on the table. “Thanks, it’s been in the family for generations, and
we’re just trying to keep it going.”

She
nodded, looked around the kitchen, and when she glanced at him again there was
this uncertainty in her expression.

“You
don’t have to be worried or nervous, Pearl.” He leaned forward, clasped his
hands together, and looked down at them. They were filthy from working on the
truck, and no amount of cleaning would take the grime off. It was embedded in
his fingers, in his very bones. He was a farmer, a cowboy, and that was how
he’d always be.

Pearl
was a sweet and sophisticated city girl, had been surrounded by the hectic
world he stayed away from. Maybe that’s why he was so drawn to her, because she
was so different from what he was used to in Granite? It made sense to a point,
but even that didn’t explain why he’d been drawn to her before he even knew any
of that. Underneath that unsure, timid exterior she sported right now, he saw a
woman that was sure of herself, of her accomplishments. She’d been dealt a
shitty hand currently, but was clearly making a home for herself in Granite and
trying to push through it.

“So,
I have the job?” she asked, breaking up his thoughts and the silence. He leaned
back in the seat once more.

“The
job is yours if you think you can handle the three of us.” He smirked. “My
brothers are loud, immature, and you being here to cook and clean up after them
will only make it worse, I think.”

She
smiled, and the way her face lit up had his heart beating a bit faster.

“If
you think you can handle that, and not wring their necks every night when they
get on your nerves, I think you’d be good here, Pearl.” He saw her smile fade
slightly, and she looked down at the table.

“Honestly?”
She looked up at him. “It’ll be nice to be around people again. Even in the
city I didn’t really have anyone aside from the people I worked with, and they
were pretty self-absorbed and vain. You three work hard, clearly, and the
atmosphere is relaxing and gorgeous.” When she smiled this time it was a little
sad, and this part of him wanted to go to her, pull her onto his lap, and hold
her.

He
wanted to be the male that made her smile, not the one that had her feeling
crummy. He’d never wanted to comfort a woman, didn’t care if their emotions had
them crying and clinging, but with Pearl he did, and that made him feel like a
man, but also a little uncomfortable.

“I’m
sorry you were alone,” he said and meant it.

She
shrugged and pasted on a smile that wasn’t very believable. “It is what it is.”
She cleared her throat again. “But…” She paused, and he knew what she was going
to say before the words left her mouth. “What are we supposed to do about last
night? I mean, isn’t this a bit awkward?”

He
thought about what she said, not because he needed to, but because he didn’t
know how to answer it. “Well, it is what it is, right?” He used her own words
to respond, because if he told her that he still wanted her, wanted to be
in
her again, she might run off and not
take the job. He couldn’t have that. He wanted her near, wanted to have her
close for his own selfish reasons. Travis didn’t even know if she’d let him
have her again, and maybe that’s all he needed to get her out of his system?
Yeah, that had to be it.

Pearl
was just so much different from the Granite women he’d immersed himself in, and
because of that he was addicted to the idea of her. God, it sounded like such a
fucking asshole thing to think, but right now he was holding onto it, and
rolling with it. She’d either give him the time of day again, or she’d say fuck
off, which may be what he deserved.

Chapter
Ten

Pearl
sat at her grandmother’s kitchen table, the hot coffee in the mug in front of
her smelling of vanilla. She also added a bit of cinnamon to her coffee, and
her grandmother had loved vanilla flavored things, so it was the best of both
worlds. She picked up the mug and stared out the window. She had to leave to go
to Sterling Farms in about ten minutes, and the sun hadn’t even risen yet. It
had been three days since she’d gone over to see Travis and his brothers, taken
the job, and realized that this would be the easiest or hardest job she’d ever
done.

With
advertising it was easy. She knew her objective, knew her goals. But with this
she was doing domestic things to help out hardworking men that hadn’t been with
a woman for more than a few hours at a time. She’d heard the rumors over the
last few days, even asked her neighbor, Brooklyn, about what the deal with them
was. The truth was she wanted to know about Travis, about his past and what
made him tick. To hear Brooklyn say he was basically a man-whore in Granite,
but that the women wanted him like they wanted a tall glass of water on a hot
day, pissed, annoyed, and made Pearl sick to her stomach.

She
finished off her coffee, took it to the sink and rinsed it out. The sun was
just now starting to rise, and she knew the guys had already been up and
working for hours. She wasn’t a total moron when it came to country living; she
just wasn’t used to it. After she grabbed her things, the few potted flowers
she’d gotten at the greenhouse to put in the kitchen and living room of the
main
house,
she got into her car and started it. Then
she headed to Sterling Farms, her heart in her throat, her nerves a wreck, and
all because she was anxious to see Travis.

When
she parked her car in front of the main house and cut the engine, the sun had
already risen, and she could see the small forms of the guys working in the
distance. They were working with a horse, running it around a pen, and maybe
breaking it in. She got right to work, knowing that they’d probably be starving
when they came inside in about an hour.

She
set the two lilacs on the kitchen table when she entered the house, wrinkled
her nose at the stale smell that filled the small room, and proceeded to open
some windows. It was supposed to be nice today. She’d cook, clean up
afterwards,
then
start on straightening up the main
house. It would take her a few days to make it
livable, that
was for sure. Cleaning was not what she’d envisioned herself doing as a
profession, but the scenery was nice, it wasn’t backbreaking work, and she was
close to the object of her desire. God, she sounded like a hormonal teenager.

She
got all the ingredients to make pancakes, scrambled eggs, sausage, and hash
browns. She made a mental note to run to the store later and stock up on food
since these men were in dire need of protein rich items. If she was really
going to do this then she’d do it right and make
herself
proud of what she was doing, even if that was cooking and cleaning.

By
the time she had the table set and the food ready to go she heard the front
door opening and banging shut. She took a step back, watching as
Jace
and Colton came in. The sound of their boots hitting
the floor was loud, the scent of their sweat was strong, and the look of
surprise on their faces when they saw the spread on the table had her smiling.
She was nervous, having never really cooked for anyone aside from herself and
her parents occasionally when they were alive. It wasn’t hard to prepare a
meal, not to her at least, but she was worried that she’d disappoint.

“Well
damn,”
Jace
said and took off his cowboy hat. He
grabbed a rag from his back pocket and wiped off the sweat from his face.

“That’s
one damn spread, Pearl,” Colton said and did the same as his brother.

Travis
came in last, and her heart jumped in her throat as she watched him take in the
scene of the table and lean against the wall. “Boy, better get cleaned up so we
can chow.” He grinned at her, and she felt her smile grow. Why did she care if
he approved?

Because
you want this to work out.
Because you want him more than
you should.

Yeah,
she really did, and she didn’t know if that was smart or not.

After
the guys cleaned up and were sitting at the table they started acting like they
hadn’t eaten in years.

“Damn,
Pearl, this shit is good,”
Jace
said, his mouth full
and the atmosphere happy and content.

“Don’t
talk with food in your mouth, ass.” Colton said around a big mouthful of food.
She found herself laughing at their antics. Turning, she started washing the
dishes, needing to find something to keep busy.

“You
want to join us?” Travis asked.

She
looked over her shoulder at him. Shaking her head, she curled her nails into
her palms. “I ate before I came here.”

He
nodded once, went back to eating, and she turned and finished cleaning the
dishes.

“We
haven’t had cooking like this since Mom.” The room went silent when
Jace
spoke, and she looked over her shoulder again. There
was this heavy tenseness that filled the room, and the expression on the guys’
faces was somber, sad. She knew from speaking with Brooklyn that they’d lost
their parents years ago, and had stayed on the farm to keep it going. These men
were strong, stuck together, and although their reputations might not be the
best because of how much sex they liked, the truth was they were honest and
hardworking.

“Would
you guys like more coffee?” she asked, grabbing the pot and going over to the
table. She didn’t want to interrupt their personal time of reflecting, but she
could also see that they were uncomfortable as the memories of their mother
clearly consumed them.

“Yeah,
darlin
’,” Travis said, and she was frozen, not sure
if she should react to him just calling her that endearment. But
Jace
and Colton didn’t act like it was a big deal, or they
didn’t care, because they kept right on eating and changed the subject.

For
the next hour she listened to the guys talk about what else needed to be done
before the sun went down, and then she cleaned up. Looking out the window over
the sink she saw
Jace
and Colton making their way
toward the barn to muck it out, and a smile came over her. They’d acted so
thankful after breakfast, even if this was her job and they were paying her.

Pearl
cleaned the kitchen, worked on that damn thing all morning, and once she was
satisfied that the dirt and grease were cleaned up as well as they were going
to be, she started working on the living room. The pictures of Travis,
Jace
, and Colton that hung on the wall spanned the course
of their lifetimes. Picking up one of the pictures, she ran a rag over the glass,
cleaning the dust from it, and staring at the woman, man, and the three little
boys that were at their feet. They were in front of the main house, the mother
and father on the steps, the little boys smiling wide as someone took their
picture. It was a cute photo, one that showed a happy family.

The
picture itself was a little faded, clearly aged from sitting on the mantel, and
sun worn. It was taken in the eighties judging by the clothing everyone wore,
and Pearl smiled. She had a similar picture of her mother and father, but it
was when she’d been in the late nineties, her brightly colored overalls, one of
the straps hanging across her chest, and her hair in about a hundred micro
braids. God, she’d loved that time back then, loved that she’d had her family,
the love they gave her continuously, and she hated that everything changed.

Setting
the picture back down, she finished dusting, Pledging,
Windexing
,
and finally vacuuming. When she was satisfied this room was tackled she took a
step back and looked at her accomplishment. It was going on lunchtime, but the
guys had eaten a big breakfast, and she’d start cooking a little later. When
she’d negotiated her schedule and her duties with Travis it had been
surprisingly easy to get what she wanted. He’d just sat there, let her do all
the talking, and agreed with whatever she’d said.

So,
Pearl would be working for them four days a week, coming in at sunrise, cooking
breakfast and a late lunch for them, and cleaning. Her wage was actually very
generous, or at least she thought so until she’d spent the entire morning
cleaning only two rooms. These men didn’t like to clean up after themselves,
that was for sure, and she certainly was earning her keep.

After
she put the cleaning supplies under the sink in the kitchen she looked out the
window and saw
Jace
and Colton again. They were
shirtless now, but the distance made it too hard to make out their physique.
Although Pearl didn’t need to see up-close how toned and defined they were. She
could gauge that with their clothing on, and knew they looked just as
phenomenal as their older brother.

She
went through the task of cooking lunch, having decided on sandwiches and
homemade macaroni salad. She’d set out a pitcher of sun tea, and it was nice
and ready when she brought it in. With a bag of chips on the table, the
toppings for the sandwiches, and the salad also waiting to be devoured by the
three men, she took a moment to just listen to … nothing. It was so peaceful
here, so tranquil even with the sound of the guys shouting in the distance. She
hadn’t seen Travis since he left after breakfast and disappeared in the back
property, and the ache she had refused to leave. What was it about him?

“What
are you thinking about?”

The
sound of Travis’s deep voice shocked her out of her thoughts. There he was,
standing before her in nothing but a pair of denims, his hair slightly damp
from sweat, his chest glistening from his time out in the sun, and all she
thought about was clearing off the table and letting him have his filthy way with
her right here and now.

“I—”
Clearing her throat and smoothing her hands down her thighs, she tried to think
of something more innocent. “Nothing, just that I should go to the store since
you guys
don’t
have much in the food department that’s
healthy.” She’d used up all of the “good” food for breakfast and making lunch,
and if she was going to be cooking the rest of the week they needed more than
what was in the pantry and fridge.

He
moved into the kitchen and set on the table the rag he’d been using to clean
off the sweat from his face and chest. Her heart started pounding a little
harder, a little faster. He moved over to the sink, right where she was
standing, and cleaned off his hands. The scent of him was clean sweat, fresh
male despite the fact he’d been working in the sun all day. His jeans were
worn, dirty, and the big gold belt buckle he wore screamed country boy, or at
least she was assuming that given the movies she’d seen of cowboys. She liked
how he looked, liked that he was wild and untamed.

“You
smell like lemon,” he said and turned his head to look at her. The sound of the
running water had her ears ringing, or maybe that was the sound of her heart
eating so fast and hard.

“You
smell like sweat,” she said and instantly felt like an asshole. But the truth
was she liked the smell, grew aroused from it even. He shut off the water and
turned to the side so he was now facing her. The sight of his chest, of his
broad shoulders and tanned skin, and the thought she wanted to run her tongue
along the droplets of perspiration on his body, had her so needy and wet.

“That’s
what a man smells like, Pearl.” He took a step closer to her and she pressed
her back to the counter, not having anywhere to go. “You know how much of a man
I am, don’t you?” He was toying with her, trying to be this arrogant male that
tempted her, she knew that, and he was succeeding.

Licking
her lips and looking down at his mouth, at his jaw scruffy with stubble, and
his lips full and kissable, she leaned forward, not able to stop herself.

“You’re
wet right now, aren’t you,
darlin
’?” he whispered in
that decadently delicious voice of his, all hard and deep.

She
didn’t want to answer, didn’t want to admit that she was so wet she couldn’t
even walk comfortably because her panties were soaked.

“You’ve
been thinking about me, thinking about my cock buried between your thighs, and
making you scream out because you feel so good.”

Her
mouth parted
on its own
, her body became flushed with
arousal, and she nodded, feeling herself slip down the rabbit hole like she was
Alice. God, this man was like her drug of choice, and her body knew exactly the
effects and emotions he could arouse in her. It wanted him, and she knew that
she wasn’t strong enough to deny herself being with him, even if this was only
about sex.

But
she didn’t want that, didn’t want to just be another notch in his bedpost. As
strange and wrong as it might be since they’d just met, she wanted more with
the cowboy, but didn’t know if she could give herself over completely to a man like
Travis. He could break her heart and not even realize what he’d done, and then
all other men would be ruined for her in the future. That was a heady
realization, and one that was kind of frightening.