Black Conley (19 page)

"Supper's ready,” Belle called, interrupting his thoughts yet again.

As he got up to head for the dining room, he decided it was best for his son continue to think Manuel was his father, and his real grandfather was nothing more than a generous patron. It was far better to be the son of a respected vaquero and ranch manager than of Black Conley, the gunslinger.

Belle immediately noticed the change in Black's disposition. She couldn't help but wonder what he learned in the letters he had received from Ed.

"What did my son have to say in his letter?” Roy asked, once they were seated and had their plates loaded with roast beef, mashed potatoes and vegetables.

"He sent me a letter he'd received from Newman's wife. It seems he wrote to her just prior to the raid. He did everything but put names to Clayte and his foreman. With this information, all that Clayte has to do is make one false move and we'll have him right where we want him."

Where do we want him?
Belle silently questioned.
Even though I know he's the one doing the rustling, I have such mixed emotions. Nettie and I were good friends. I don't want to raise her children, and yet they deserve much better than Clayte for their father.

It had been over a month since she'd spoken with any of the girls about the orphanage, but with the closing of the stage line, it would be a way to keep the girls on the ranch. She certainly didn't know what she would do without them.

Around her, the table conversation jumped from topic to topic until at last Black went out on the porch for a smoke. Leaving the cleanup of the kitchen to the girls and Annie, Belle grabbed a heavy shawl and went out to join him.

"Was there bad news in the letter from Ed?” she asked.

Black turned to face her. For a moment she though she saw tears in his eyes, but dismissed the idea. Black wouldn't be crying over a letter from his boss. It was the moonlight playing tricks on her.

"I have a son, Belle. He's almost fifteen, and I'll never know him."

"A son?"

"Do you remember me telling you about Theresa?"

"The girl in Mexico?"

Black nodded. “She lost her virginity on the night that I took her to my bed, and so did I. When I left, she was carrying my child. Now my son calls the man who taught me to use a gun Father, and thinks of my own grandfather as a kind patron rather than his great-grandfather."

"Is the man who married Theresa a good man?” Belle asked.

"Very good. Fifteen years ago he was a vaquero on my grandfather's rancho. Now he manages the entire operation. I'm pleased to think my son has such a good father, but it saddens me to think that I walked away from him in search of the life of a gunslinger."

"You did what you had to do,” she said, thinking of her own daughter and the nuns who ripped the girl from her arms. “We aren't so different after all. I wasn't much older than you when I had my child. There was no way I could have provided for her. At least she has a home with two loving parents, rather than a child trying to raise a child."

The thought of her little girl being raised by strangers brought unbidden tears to Belle's eyes.

"You regret leaving her behind, don't you?” Black asked, as he enfolded her in his arms.

Belle sniffed loudly. “More than anything in the world. I know that I couldn't have cared for her properly, but just knowing that there's a part of me out there that I'll never know breaks my heart."

"I feel the same way about Jose. He is my son and yet he will never know me. In my case, it's best that he doesn't find out about the dark side of his father. My life is nothing that a young man should be proud of. My father tells me that boy is very intelligent and will be going to the university in Mexico City next year. For me it's enough to know that he has grown into the man my grandfather wanted me to be."

"You shouldn't talk like that, Black. Your son would be proud to call you father, but he has never had the chance. Give me a child, Black. Give me a part of you to have for the rest of my life."

Black pulled back from their embrace and looked deeply into her eyes. “You don't mean what you're saying. We're both grieving the loss of children we can never claim. It wouldn't be right for us to bring a child into the world. I wouldn't be here to help you raise it, and you would come to despise me for leaving you alone. It wouldn't be fair to the child."

"Don't say that. I don't expect you to stay here just because of a child. Once the railroad comes to Larson's Gap, we will no longer need the stage stop. The girls are thinking of opening an orphanage and using the addition to the house where the passengers stay for housing for the children. Our child wouldn't be an only child. It would be as though he or she had several brothers and sisters to grow up with and have for playmates. I would never hold you responsible for the care or support of our child. This may be my only chance to be a mother. Please don't deprive me of that honor."

He started into her eyes for a long moment. She couldn't help but wonder about the thoughts that were formulating behind his dark eyes. Were his thoughts of the child he would never acknowledge, or were they that he thought she had completely lost her mind?

When Black pulled her closer into his embrace, she questioned her reasoning. Could she raise a child alone? The answer was a resounding yes. If the child belonged to Black, she wouldn't care. She would have a part of him to cherish long after he was gone from her life and on to the next assignment. Although she told no one, she had stopped drinking the tea to prevent pregnancy about a week earlier. Now she was glad she did. With the letter from Ed giving Black the information he needed to arrest Clayte, she might not have had the time for the effects of the tea to wear off otherwise.

"Are you sure about this?” he asked, guiding her back into the warmth of the house.

"Yes, I am. Does that upset you?"

"Not really. I would like to give you a son, but my concern is for your well-being once I'm gone. Would the child know about me or would you keep my identity a secret?"

"I would tell our child of its father with great pride. There is no reason for any of us to be ashamed of you being its father and you would be welcome to visit any time you wished. I would never hold you here against your will, but I wouldn't keep you away either."

"This will take some getting used to. I think we need to go to bed and practice making a baby before we do it for real. There is no other woman who has ever been in my life that could be a better mother to my child."

"Not even Theresa?” she teased.

"Theresa is different. I never planned to leave her with my child. At my young age, I never even considered that such a thing could happen. With you, it's different. I know what the consequences of my actions are and I'm ready to face them."

Black considered Belle's proposal as they made their way to bed. His cock ached to be planted deeply within her, but he worried about the child she wanted. Was she telling him that she was already pregnant? He doubted it. They had talked about it and she'd told him that she'd been drinking the tea that prevented pregnancy since before his arrival. Surely that would keep his seed from taking hold and giving her a child.

Once they were alone in their room, he looked at her intently. “You aren't in a family way now, are you?"

Her smile said volumes. “Not yet. I wanted to see your reaction. I've been thinking about it for quite some time, but didn't say anything until I saw your expression after reading your grandfather's letter. I didn't mean to make you feel trapped."

Black ran his fingers through his hair. “Trapped ain't the word I had in mind. I was thinking more of you. You know that I'll be leaving when this assignment is over. What will happen when the good people of Larson's Gap brand you a whore?"

Belle laughed as though he'd said the funniest thing in the world. “My dear Black, I was branded a whore on the day I turned down Clayte's first proposal, right after Pa died and Roy got hurt. Clayte made certain that no man worth his salt would work for me. That was when I brought in the girls. We learned how to run this ranch together. Everyone in town knew who and what they were, and so that was the name they gave me as well. I was a fool not to play the part before this, but there was never a man I wanted in my bed as much as I wanted you."

Black pulled her into his arms and kissed her soundly. As his tongue played with hers, his cock swelled. Unable to control himself, he worked the buttons that went down the back of her dress until the garment was loose enough to slip off her shoulders and down to the floor.

He stepped back to gaze on her breasts as they strained against the thin fabric of her undergarment. Out of instinct and desire, he rubbed his thumbs over her nipples until they hardened into taut peaks.

"Not tonight,” she whispered, as she pulled away from him.

He knew his disappointment showed on his face.

"Don't look so sad. We will make love; only tonight I will be the one in control. I have talked to both Lacy and Cara, and they have taught me a few tricks that I think you'll enjoy."

Black looked around the room and saw the silken ties that he knew Cara enjoyed as well as the whip of soft leather. He didn't think he would like either. The thought of whipping Belle or being whipped by her weren't exactly to his liking. He also didn't know about tying her up to the bedposts. He'd never taken a woman by force, and now wasn't the time to start. He was falling in love with Belle, and refused to degrade her in such a manner.

"I don't know if I'm up to the strange things those girls do. I don't want to hurt you."

A strange smile crossed Belle's lips. “You won't hurt me, and I won't hurt you. For tonight you will be my prisoner, and I will be the one in charge of the situation."

Deftly, she helped him out of his clothes, kneeling in front of him to kiss the entire length of his cock. When he thought he could stand it no longer, she slipped the silken cords around his wrists.

"I know you're the lawman, but tonight you are my lawman as well as my prisoner, my sex slave."

He smiled at her words, but wondered why she thought having him bound would be such a pleasure. The feel of her hands and lips on his body forced him to hold his tongue. Instead, he lay down on the bed and allowed her to do whatever she wished with him.

To his surprise, being bound with his legs spread-eagled was the most erotic feeling he'd ever encountered in his life. Even with the lamp turned low, he could see her every move and appreciate the things she was doing to him.

She started by running her fingers up his legs until she reached his cock and balls. Once there, she proceeded to suck him in the same manner that Kate had. She even ran her tongue over his balls until he shuddered over such delicious torture. When she pulled one of his balls into her mouth while manipulating the other between her fingers, he thought he would cum before he ever slipped into her velvety folds.

"You are killing me, woman. Free me from these bonds so I can—"

"Not on your life, Black Conley. Tonight belongs to me, and I intend to control everything that goes on between the two of us."

Instead of continuing what she'd been doing, she got to her feet and slipped out of her undergarments. As she stood before him, she fondled her breasts in the way he longed to do before she joined him on the bed.

For a few moments, she stroked his cock until it stood tall and straight. When she was pleased with its condition, she straddled him and rode up and down, sending his cock deeply inside her. He thrashed and moaned with the pleasure as she had done so many times when she'd lain beneath him.

When they finally climaxed, she rolled from on top of him and nestled beside him. “Are you going to untie me, woman?” he asked.

She reached up and kissed him, tracing her tongue around the outline of his lips. “I don't know, I rather enjoy having you as my sex slave. I wonder if I could get you aroused enough to do it again while in this position."

"It is entirely possible, but I long to hold you in my arms and feel the silkiness of your skin beneath my fingertips."

She kissed him again and then untied his wrists. Once he was free, he turned her onto her back and grabbed her wrists, pinning them behind her head. “What are you doing?” she questioned.

"I'm making you
my
sex slave. You should have a chance to experience the pleasure of being helpless and open to whatever I want to do to you."

In one swift movement, he tied her wrists as she had his. It pleased him that she gave no resistance. Once her hands were tied, he did likewise to her ankles, making her, indeed his prisoner.

"That's not fair,” she protested. “I didn't tie your ankles. Just your wrists."

Black smiled wickedly. “I could have broken those bonds anytime I pleased. To be honest, I wouldn't have protested if you had tied my ankles, but of course you didn't, giving me the pleasure of doing so to you."

Before he began, he poured some water into a bowl and rinsed out a cloth.

"What are you doing?"

"Cleaning the remnants of our lovemaking from your body. I prefer the clean scent of you to that of my cum clinging to your pussy."

When he finished, he cleaned himself and returned to the bed, ready and willing to love her completely throughout the night. He caught a glimpse of the feather she'd used so successfully on him. Until she was tied securely, he'd forgotten about it, but now it seemed like the ideal torture for what she'd done to him. Once he picked it up, he ran it through his fingers, remembering the delights she had given him when she ran it over his body.

He enjoyed how her eyes widened when he picked up the feather. It would be interesting to watch her reaction to this wonderful love toy.

After joining her on the bed, he loosened the binding on one of her ankles and picked up her foot as though he wanted to examine it. Instead, he began to message the arch and between each of her toes. When he finished, he did likewise to the other foot until she moaned with pleasure.